


Logic and Trickster - Act 6

by Logic_and_Trickster



Series: The Phantom Thieves Meet Phoenix Wright - Logic and Trickster [7]
Category: Persona 5, 逆転裁判 | Gyakuten Saiban | Ace Attorney
Genre: Cross-Posted on deviantArt, Crossover
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-25
Updated: 2020-08-20
Packaged: 2021-02-27 14:07:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 42,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22408438
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Logic_and_Trickster/pseuds/Logic_and_Trickster
Summary: Wake Up, Get Up, Turnabout There! The first arc of Logic and Trickster reaches its peak as Phoenix, Maya, and Sae take a stand in court to defend Akira Kurusu. Unraveling the truth will be no small feat, especially with the unpredictable prosecutor Yashin Yokubō on the opposite side of the court. And with the stakes already high--it was a foreign diplomat who was killed, which could create an international incident--messing up just isn't an option. It'll take our heroes all they've got to discover the true killer and save Akira.
Series: The Phantom Thieves Meet Phoenix Wright - Logic and Trickster [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1612450
Comments: 20
Kudos: 61





	1. Chapter 6a: Wake Up, Get Up, Turnabout There

  


_ April 13th, 7:45 am _

_ Tokyo District Court, Defendant Lobby No. 2 _

These last two nights, I've gotten this strange sensation that I've been sleeping through something important. Very peculiar... I'm really not certain what would cause me to get such a feeling.

But, regardless, here we are now. This defendant lobby is the same as any other, with a small couch and a table as well as some potted plants and other basic decorations to make it feel more cozy. Though I can tell you from experience, when you're accused, a defendant lobby is anything  _ but _ cozy.

Despite the uncertainty and fear that a defendant usually feels, Akira seems to be handling himself well. Though his situation is less than ideal, his mood has been steadily improving since he learned that the Orb is being held by one of our friends. And on top of that, my agreement to represent him in court has bolstered his spirits as well. I assume that his bleak demeanor in the interrogation room wasn't a true reflection of himself, and I feel like he's slowly regaining the kind of charisma and resolve it must take to be the leader of a group like the Phantom Thieves.

\---Music:  [ Club Zodiac (Persona 2 Eternal Punishment) ](https://youtu.be/-7PkhOcYbzA) \---

"And that's basically everything we uncovered at the crime scene," Maya summarizes, the three of us just having finished a short conversation about our investigation yesterday.

Akira hums in thought. "Hmm... based on the photos, I've never even seen that man before. I have no clue who he is."

"That gives even LESS of a reason for murder," I observe, "I can't possibly imagine what sort of motive that the prosecution is going to try and pin on you..."

Akira seems to have thoughts on the matter. "Do they even really need to have a reason? If they announce that I'm the former leader of a criminal group, that's all they need to say to make a convincing argument. I've already been charged with burglary in the past."

"Man..." Maya pouts, "We really don't have any room to mess up here, huh."

Akira looks as if he's had a revelation. "Actually, speaking of rooms, I had a dream last night... I saw 'that room' again, Mr. Wright."

"'The Velvet Room?'" I say, just for clarity.

He nods. "It was... bizarre. My head was throbbing almost the entire time. What I saw was a giant theater, and a grand stage. On that stage, there was supposedly an actor putting on a play, talking with another person over the phone, but they looked like a shadow... and I have a feeling it wasn't an act. I got the sense that I was bearing witness to something from reality. I can't remember the conversation completely, but I think they might have been the ones behind all of the murders. They were talking about the Orbs, they mentioned the tragedy in Koridai, and I think they said that one of them actually sent this Austin guy on their behalf."

I'm extremely shocked to hear all of this! "I knew the Velvet place was supernatural, but you're telling me it was showing you real world events? Well, obviously you are more familiar with the place than I am, so if you think that's what the case is... you're probably right."

"Just with what I've seen and experienced, I know that this room can have a mind of its own. It always seems to have an agenda, or a purpose. I have no doubt that there was a reason that these events played in front of me."

"So," Maya escalates, "You said the actor looked like a shadow? There was no way for you to see anything about what they actually looked like, or who they might be?"

Akira shakes his head solemnly. "Sorry. It was definitely not normal. Something was skewing my senses."

"Either way, even if there's a chance this is real," I caution, "Then we should act as if the bad guys are already watching our every move."

"Even if they aren't, this is still a bad spot to be in," Akira laments, "Government agents may start trailing me again, I could get watch-listed... the Phantom Thieves weren't exactly on good terms with authority. Me being on trial here could set off all kinds of red flags..."

Maya gulps. "That is, if we can't conclusively prove that someone else was in the museum that night and committed the crimes."

"This other thief, Mask☆DeMasque..." Akira mentions, "There's no way he would have been the killer, right? I'm assuming the best of him if he's a friend of yours."

Maya nods with vigor, one hundred percent sure of herself. "He's one of the sweetest guys you'll ever meet! He'd never hurt anyone!"

I bite my lip a tad. "... So we have to find out who really killed the victim, while simultaneously trying not to implicate either you OR him..."

"And we need to assert that I was completely uninvolved," Akira speaks grimly, "If they even prove that I was in the museum after hours at all, that's still breaking and entering they'll have on me. I'll be as good as done."

This whole thing makes me incredibly uneasy. In reality, we know that both Akira and Ron WERE in the museum... we're going to be fighting fact with fiction... I don't know if I can even possibly do that.

"Did your team take precautions against the security cameras?" I ask, recognizing I've almost overlooked something absolutely critical, "It'll be over in seconds if they have you on camera."

"Not an issue," Akira replies, "My tech support made sure to loop the camera footage that night. The cameras will be worthless, and I bet the police and investigators already know that."

Hmm... I'm still not used to such wanton disregard for laws with all of this infiltrating and hacking and such... "Well, that's good for us, but also bad for our case. That means we won't have footage of who ACTUALLY committed the crime, huh?"

"We'll take what we can get," Akira remarks, "We can't have anything leading back to me being there."

Maya raises her hand. "You said you got caught a few blocks away from the museum! That's already in your favor, since nobody actually saw you inside the building."

"So that's our story, then," Akira speaks with certainty, "I was unrelated to any of this, and just happened to be in the area surrounding the building at the time."

"You didn't leave any physical evidence of any kind, right?" I probe, "We're doomed if you left fingerprints anywhere, for instance."

"Of course not," Akira denies, "I was wearing gloves."

He makes a good point, but I have further worries. "I understand you wore gloves that night, but I'm also concerned about earlier in the day. You and other Phantom Thieves were in the museum at the same time we were. I remember that some of you made that distraction so that Maya and I could escape. Is there a chance you or your team could have left any traces at all?"

"No way, Nick," Maya interjects, "Don't forget that touching the museum stuff is against the rules! It says so in the exhibit guide."

Despite Maya's assertion, Akira turns pale. "Come to think of it... I wasn't wearing gloves when I was inside Hibiki's office..."

A black cat jumps onto the couch next to Akira, and meows several times. Are pets allowed in the lobby...?

As the cat continues making a racket, Akira sighs with relief and pets the cat. "Thanks for always having my back," he says... to the cat, I presume. How did that cat even get in here? 

I hear the door click closed, and we all clam up. Luckily it's Sae, who just entered the room, so it's still safe to continue talking about what really happened. "Good morning to you all," she greets, maintaining a smile as best she can under the circumstances.

"To you as well," I greet back.

Sae zips her purse closed, so I can assume the cat was smuggled in inside of it. "Morgana wanted to come along to show his support, so I brought him here with me."

That explains the cat. What it doesn't explain is why Akira was talking to it. He can see my confusion and begins to explain. "Morgana is one of us, and was running reconnaissance while we were in the museum and exploring the building. He just told me that, before he left, he snuck into the office we were in. He managed to wipe the door handle and all of the desk drawer handles for any potential prints, so I think we're covered on that front. And then... he teased me for making such an amateur mistake," Akira chuckles.

"The Phantom Thieves have a cat on their team?!" Maya gasps, "That's so cool!!"

Akira sees that I am even more confused now. "Oh, I forgot to mention. In the Metaverse, Morgana could talk. Anyone who was exposed to him talking in there can also hear him talk out here in the real world. Something about cognition being changed, just more psience stuff."

"This all just keeps getting more and more wacky," I shrug.

"Akira," Sae addresses, changing the subject, "It must be tough to be in this position. How are you feeling? Are you doing alright?"

Our defendant attempts a smirk. "I'm hanging in there."

"That's good to hear. I've got some news for you all, as well," Sae explains, "'Alibaba' is currently working hard to repair the inner workings of Austin's destroyed phone. As soon as she's able to get a look at the data inside, she said she'll make sure to rush on over to deliver the phone."

"Wait," Maya pauses, "Alibaba's a girl?"

Sae blinks. "Huh. I guess she never specified. Well, either way, she wanted me to also let you know that it will be time to formally meet after this trial gets dealt with."

"Just her? Or the whole group?" I ask to try and specify.

"The rest of the group will be in the gallery watching," Sae answers, "And they too are looking forward to formally introduce themselves to you. In fact, they wanted me to tell you how much it means to all of us that you're doing this for Akira."

"Well, we're not in the clear yet," I point out, "They can thank us after we get a not guilty verdict."

"There was one other thing Alibaba requested I pass on to the both of you," Sae continues on, before adjusting her hair on one side by running her fingers through it. "Specifically, that she went back into the servers with the intention of erasing any camera footage, just in case. But, as it turns out... the data was already gone. Someone must have erased it before her."

"Would it have been Mask☆DeMasque...?" Akira raises an eyebrow.

I shake my head. "I doubt it. He's certainly skilled, but I haven't known technology to be of any particular forte of his."

Maya presses her fist to her chin to focus. "There's still a lot we don't know about that night, or this trial..."

"Well, at least we all know first hand that you two can walk into a trial blind and still win," Sae jokes sardonically. 

"You have no idea," I attempt to joke back, but I can't find it in myself to laugh, because it's so literally true. I don't think I've ever once entered into a courtroom on the first day of a trial with everything figured out.

"Speaking of things we don't know; Miss Niijima," Maya announces, "I actually have a question. Do you know anything about the prosecution?"

"That's a great question," I realize, "We mentioned the threat they pose earlier, but none of us know who it is or what to expect."

"I'm... not sure, myself," Sae reveals as she bites her lip a tad, "Though I have heard that it's a young and ambitious prosecutor who has already achieved quite a number of guilty verdicts in their favor."

"That doesn't sound so bad, compared to what we're used to!" Maya smiles, "Nick usually takes on lawyers with descriptions like, 'Undefeated in 40 Years,' or 'Best Prosecutor in the Country,' and such. He didn't get famous for nothing!"

"You guys sound even gutsier than us," Akira laughs lightly, "I didn't realize you were such a big name in the legal world."

I scratch the back of my head bashfully. "Well, I'm not exactly  _ famous _ , I think Maya is exaggerating that part a bit..."

"Still," he brushes aside, "It's reassuring to know I have such capable allies in you two," Akira compliments.

Maya offers a high five, and he reciprocates. "You know it! You've got nothing to worry about with us on the case!"

"This one is going to be tricky, though," I speak honestly, "I  _ really _ hope they don't have anything conclusive on you being in the Museum that night, Akira..."

"I'm looking at it this way," Sae interjects, "We know that Akira didn't kill anyone, which means someone else did. Ergo, any conclusive evidence about the murder would lead to implicating the true killer, and proving Akira's innocence."

We hear the door open, and we all quiet up yet again. It's an officer of the court, and he's ready to summon us. "Excuse me, folks. But the trial proceedings are about to begin. They're ready for you to enter, now."

I straighten my tie as we all get situated and rise from our seats to follow the bailiff. Sae, Akira, Maya, and I all exchange glances, and nod our heads in unison as we mentally prepare for the trial ahead. Here goes nothing... 

\---(Music End)---

_ April 13th, 8:00 am _

_ Tokyo District Court, Courtroom No. 2 _

The entrance into the courtroom sounds heavy as the doors slowly swing, as if they themselves are carrying the weight of the anxiety shared between all of us. 

We enter the door at the back of the court, and... whoa! What do we have here? This courtroom looks just like the ones back home that I'm used to! 

\---Music:  [ Zodiac (Persona 2 Innocent Sin PSP Ver.) ](https://youtu.be/0QuQcXhdPz8) \---

This is the layout I know and love. The central fixture of the room is the Judge's seat which is against the back wall, opposite of the witness stand, creating an implied line down the very center of the court. On one side, the prosecution's table, facing the other side, which is the defense's table we will be positioned at. At both of our backs on either side of the room are raised seating for an audience to have a clear view of everything.

The mumbles of chatter feel very natural and lively, but the grand halls and tall ceiling return echoes which evoke the resonance one would hear in a large church. The airy, brief reverberation to each sound really gives a trial a larger-than-life sort of feeling.

"Things look totally different in here than they did in the last courtroom!" Maya comments, "This must be what they meant when they said that some of the courtrooms were undergoing renovations."

"They really have taken almost all of their cues from your system over in the states," Sae furthers.

"Well, I'm certainly not complaining!" I assert, taking a breath and feeling invigorated, "This is much more familiar and comfortable. I'm ready to go out there and show them my A game!"

Alright. The stage is being set as we speak. The bailiff leads Akira to the chair he will be sitting in for the majority of the trial, and Morgana joins him by hopping onto his lap. A cat is far from the craziest animal I've seen in a courtroom, so I'm sure no one has any problems with the furry spectator keeping the accused company.

The prosecution is nowhere to be seen at the moment, but we head to our positions behind the defense table regardless. Maya, Sae, and I... the three of us make quite the remarkable team. After we take our spots, the Judge-

\---(Music Pause)---

".............................. H-Hello again, your Honor," I tiredly greet our lovable Judge, my vigor already exhausted.

"Oh! Good morning, Mr. Wright!" he speaks as jolly and amiable as ever, "I see you've brought quite the party, this time. What's the occasion?"

"The trial, your Honor," Sae replies directly, "The trial is the occasion..."

Oh boy, I didn't even think about how these two would interact during the trial. Sae's cool professionalism compared to the Judge makes him look... well, frankly, the Judge can be pretty goofy. What a combination.

\---(Music Resume)---

"So what's the deal this time, your Honor?" Maya asks, "Did your flight back home get cancelled?"

"There's a charming restaurant called Slappy Cakes, you see, and while I was eating a pancake breakfast there," the Judge begins,--and I can already tell this story will be a doozy--"I seemed to have gotten some powdered sugar on my face which I didn't notice. The airport security were convinced I was trying to hide illegal drugs in my beard! So I was held up at the security checkpoint for quite some time. So long, in fact, that I was already too tired to make my flight and elected to just return to my hotel room for some rest. Then the court contacted me on my walk back, and... well, here I am!"

"Aren't you only allowed jurisdiction in this place on Wednesdays?" Maya asks, bringing the validity of his oversight of this trial to question.

He shakes his head. "There's one particularly obscure law in specific which authorizes American judges the ability to oversee trials in certain parts of Tokyo--at least on a Saturday, that is."

"Wh-" Maya almost questions, but can't find the energy to finish any actual words.

"It's quite the interesting story behind the law. It involves a pig AND a Ferris wheel."

Maya looks at him as if she wants to say something.

"Just let it go, Maya," I whisper.

"Well, with all else considered," the Judge shifts gears, "It seems we are almost ready to begin. That must be the prosecution arriving now."

Sure enough, a woman enters the room.

\---Music:  [ Rainy Rose (God Hand) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9_hVK_qNzE) \---

Now here's another character, that much is clear. Her attire is... interesting, to say the least. She's tall, even compared to those around her. She looks like she meets my height, in fact. She's wearing a white business suit, not quite buttoned up to the very top which leaves a grey vest slightly visible underneath. She has a bow tie which is white on one side, black on the other, and grey in the center knot. 

Similar to her choice of clothing, her appearance seems to have the same coloration of white and grey. Her hair is extremely white, in fact, as if it were bleached. However, she has a few stands of hair which form a vertical, grey streak from her forehead to the nape of her neck. Her hair is combed back and held in place with some form of hair product, presumably, but her hair is long enough that it subtly spikes out from the back. She has the "business in the front, party in the back" sort of mullet-ish look going on as if her hair were secretly trying to rebel against an otherwise completely formal look.

The woman approaches us, and she soon stands on the opposite side of our defense table. "Y'know," she starts speaking, with a rather tomboyish voice, "If you stare any harder, you might get eyestrain."

I realize she is addressing me specifically and get embarrassed. "My apologies, miss. I didn't realize I was staring."

When she closes her eyes to laugh, her soft chuckles whistle through a large, bright, and toothy smile--one which almost gives me the mental picture of shark teeth. "It's alright. If you take me out to dinner after, then you can stare all you want! But, before we can get to any of that fun stuff, we've got a trial first, yeah?"

So... based on this teasing, I take it she has a pretty playful attitude. Her style of dress and behavior certainly lead me to the conclusion that she's rather eccentric. Still smiling, she extends her hand towards me. Between Sae, the museum curator, and now this woman, I'm actually surprised at how many people I've met in Japan seem to prefer handshakes instead of bowing. I reciprocate and the two of us shake. "Yashin Yokubō. You can just call me Yashin. Seems we'll be on opposite tables for this trial."

"Phoenix Wright," I respond in turn, "Pleasure to meet you. This is Sae Niijima, and Maya Fey, my consultants for this trial."

She shakes the hands of both of my companions as well. "A three-person team, how exciting! This is new to me. I hope I'll be able to keep up with so many professionals," Yashin snickers. I get a gut feeling that she's the type to hide her personality, and that her friendly socialization may not be what she's really like. She seems earnest enough... it's actually pretty hard to get a read on how genuine she's being, though. 

Well, enough speculation for now. I'll know what she's like soon enough once this trial really gets rolling.

\---(Music End)---

The Judge clears his throat, ready for his next announcement. "Now seems like as good a time as any for our proceedings to begin. As soon as the defense and prosecution get themselves situated, that is."

Yashin smiles and waves her hand as if to say "ta-ta for now," and heads over to her own table.

\---Music:  [ Zodiac (Persona 2 Innocent Sin PSP Ver.) ](https://youtu.be/0QuQcXhdPz8) \---

The first crack of the Judge's gavel always rings the longest as the echos left by it slowly die down. "Court is now in session for the trial of Mr. Akira Kurusu," he states, with his voice echoing with equal weight and authority to the gavel's strike.

"The defense is ready, your Honor," I nod.

... No one says anything else. All eyes look to the prosecution, only to see Yashin with her fingers interwoven and her arms stretching upwards as far as they can as she reaches to the sky. Finally, the Judge directly addresses Yashin. "Prosecution, are you ready to begin? Is something the matter?"

"Nothing, your Honor," Yashin returns while rolling her neck around a few times. "I was simply stretching to warm up. The prosecution is ready as well, your Honor. Let us start the game."

That's a peculiar choice of words to say the least. Well, that aside, I need to focus on the matter at hand. This trial is getting started, and I need to go in swinging if I want to get Akira acquitted.

"Now then, I'd say we've dawdled long enough," the Judge admits, "So I would like to get right to it: the prosecution may now present their opening statement to the court."

\---Music:  [ Reasoning (Persona 4) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF-AtVPfTjk) \---

"Of course, I would be delighted to do so, your Honor," Yashin agrees, in one motion both crossing one arm diagonally across her chest as well as leaning forward in a very formal bow. "Today we come together for a number of crimes, chiefly the murder of Austin Translation-san. Make no mistake that the prosecution has strong reasoning to believe the defendant is responsible for all of the crimes he is accused of. Signs of a struggle were present at the crime scene, and the police immediately searched the museum and the surrounding area for any possible suspects. Roughly a kilometer away from the crime scene, police apprehended the defendant, Akira Kurusu-san. He was described as 'wearing suspicious clothes and strangely emerging from thick bushes' in a forested area around the museum. A suspicious man sneaking through the woods late at night in an area right next to the location of a break-in and a murder? You better believe he was arrested on the spot. The prosecution believes, without a reasonable doubt, that the defendant is the responsible party for each and every crime."

"Hmm. That does seem suspect," the Judge agrees, "And I trust that you'll detail what each of those charges are."

"Our first witness will be doing the explaining on that front," Yashin nods.

\---(Music End)---

"Thank you, Yokubō-san," the Judge politely nods, and then continues on with his own commentary. "With all things considered, this sounds like a very complicated series of crimes, with a multitude of unanswered questions as to what truly happened that night."

"The prosecution is confident each of those questions will be answered," Yashin asserts, before making an aside, "Also, just calling me 'Yashin' is fine, your Honor."

'"That's perfectly fine," the Judge accepts, "So, Miss Yashin, would you kindly introduce your first witness?"

"That I will," she accepts, gesturing to Ritsu who has been sitting in a chair nearby the proceedings. He stands up and calmly walks up to the witness stand. It's the same detective we've been seeing here and there for the last few days. His unassuming looks almost make him more distinct, in a sense, since his comparatively normal appearance is so different from how everyone else we meet dresses like they're ready for a costume party. Also, I haven't forgotten that he was sharp enough to catch on to what we were really investigating. There's a lot I want to talk with him about, but that will have to wait for another time. 

"Witness, would you mind telling us your name and your occupation?" Yashin requests.

"Certainly. The name's Ritsu Chitsujo, and I'm a detective for homicide cases in this district. I like to keep things informal, so I just go by 'detective Ritsu.'"

"Thank you, detective," Yashin commends, "Now, it's high time we went into specifics as to the actual crimes the defendant is being accused of. Would you mind giving us some more information about the circumstances, as well as the murder?"

"Not at all. I'm ready to testify," Ritsu confirms.

"Very well," the Judge allows, "Please proceed with explaining the initial details of this case."

  


\-- Night at the Museum --

\---Music:  [ Bonfire (Persona Q) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKrCk1D9c4Y) \---

"At 9:17 pm on the night of April 11th, the Sniffsonian Museum's alarm was set off due to a break-in.

The museum had recently closed for the night, and no one was supposed to have been inside.

Police rushed to the scene and discovered the body of Austin Translation-san on the ground floor of the museum's atrium.

To answer the question about what charges are being pressed: breaking and entering, and grand larceny, at the very least. 

However, we're certain enough based on the cause of death that this will specifically be pursued as a murder trial."

\---(Music End)---

Yeesh. Just hearing all of that compounded at once almost feels overwhelming.

The Judge's eyes close as he processes the information. "Hmm. In my years of overseeing trials I can already tell that this series of events could be much more complicated then they seem on the surface... however, I have a direct question. Why not simply check the security footage to see what had happened? Wouldn't any museum be teeming with security cameras?"

"Unfortunately, your Honor," Yashin responds, "All of the security footage from that day was gone without a trace. We aren't sure if the burglar deleted it thru some means, or if there was a glitch in the system. But, whatever the reason, footage of the events of these crimes doesn't exist."

"That's... inconvenient, to say the least!" the Judge speaks aloud, clearly not happy with this revelation.

"We'll just have to figure out the truth on our own, your Honor," Yashin summarizes curtly.

"What are you thinking, Mr. Wright?" Sae asks me.

"I'm thinking there are way too many unknowns to make such a conclusive assumption as murder," I answer, sharing my initial thoughts.

"Well, what did you discover while investigating? Do we have anything in our evidence that could confirm or deny if it was truly murder?" Sae asks further.

I rummage through all we've got. "Not anything that stands out at first glance, no..."

"Well, you know that seemingly impenetrable testimonies have never stopped us before, Nick," Maya speaks in an encouraging tone, "If we don't have evidence, then we just have to press the rights statements to draw out more information. And lucky for us, this testimony has so many loose ends that we can ask him questions about basically any part of it!"

"You have a point," I nod, "So it would be best for us to just take this step by step."

"A solid testimony," the Judge assesses, "This is an acceptable starting point for things, though I am curious about most of the situation as well. Nevertheless, I'll leave the probing to the defense. You may begin your cross-examination."

\---Music:  [ Bonfire (Persona Q) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKrCk1D9c4Y) \--- 

Something in particular immediately caught my attention. When listing out the crimes, he mentioned larceny. Was anything truly stolen? I suppose the Orb was taken, but I doubt the curator would have reported such a thing as missing. Anything leading back to evidence of his black market dealings could backfire and expose his under the table sails and would ruin the reputation of his museum completely.

Well, it couldn't hurt to try and prod for more info.

"Detective," I announce to the witness, changing subjects back to the testimony, "It may just be that our information isn't up to date, but the defense sees no explanation for why grand larceny would be on the crime list. Was anything even stolen?"

"We didn't think so, initially..." Ritsu answers me, with a tone of voice leaving a hanging implication that there's more. "However, the owner and curator of the Sniffsonian has reported the loss of several expensive pieces of artwork which were property of the museum. This has been an ongoing scandal with the museum, but now that we've caught a burglar, the curator is insisting that this may be the culprit behind the recent thefts."

"No way...!!" Maya huffs, growing upset. "We know for a fact that the curator has been..."

"Hold tight, Maya," I caution, "We don't have anything with us that could directly prove the curator's shady dealings, unfortunately."

"However, not to get sidetracked," Ritsu states, rallying us all back to the topic at hand, "This trial is specifically for the murder of Austin Translation-san. Collateral damage and theft of property will have to be addressed at a later trial."

He's right. This whole shebang is huge and complex, and we can't let ourselves lose our focus. Alright then. Time to break it down piece by piece. 

That sentence at end begs for a more detailed description, and the cause of death will be explored in detail eventually anyway. So let's get to the point and go with that one for now.

"Detective, care to explain the cause of death?" I begin, "You must be confident in the findings based on the certainty of your murder statement."

"Well... the  _ exact _ cause of death isn't quite clear. Several injuries were compounded in the same small window of time," Ritsu explains, while referring to his copy of the  **Autopsy Report** . "In addition to body-wide trauma from the statue, which resulted in bruising as well as his legs being crushed, he was found with a serious skull fracture suggesting a heavy blow to the head. On top of everything else, a sharp piece of wood was found sticking out of a puncture wound in his torso. Any one of these individual injuries could have proven fatal, or some combination thereof."

Sae holds her chin, contemplating what was just said. "I suppose the information hadn't been formally testified in court yet, but this doesn't tell us anything new that we didn't already know."

Yashin stretches by grabbing her shoulder and rotating her arm. "The prosecution believes that this is more than enough to conclude that this was murder. It's extremely unlikely that any one of these injuries could have been accidental, much less all of them."

"I'm inclined to agree with that assessment," the Judge expresses, "I truly can't fathom a scenario that would end with all of these injuries without some sort of outside involvement..."

I need to be careful not to take too many shots in the dark like that. If I slip up at all, I could reveal something damning for Akira. I need to decide which statements might benefit us the most if we draw out more information... let's re-visit a different statement. 

There's one statement that seems out of place if we're assuming that someone else was in the building to murder the victim. I think that's a good route to approach from.

"There's definitely a contradiction with the interpretation of events in this very testimony," I point out. "Detective, recall that you explained that no one should have even been in the museum at the time of death, due to the building closing for the night."

The detective considers what I'm saying, and then recognizes what I'm asserting. "Ah, so you're questioning how someone else would have even been present to have killed the victim."

"That is an unanswered question in and of itself," I agree, "But of equal importance is the question of why  _ the victim _ was in the museum at all, as well."

The Judge closes his eyes to think, and then opens them to speak. "That is indeed an important question that the defense raises. Under normal circumstances, no one at all should have been where the victim was! That a second party could have been there makes me question the security at this museum in general..."

I shake my head. "We may be overthinking things here, your Honor. Consider this: we're trying to explain the events of a break-in, and the victim was already present in a location he shouldn't have been."

Yashin seems to be on the same page. "Ahhhh. I see where you're going with this."

"The defense would like to raise the possibility that Translation-san himself was the sole criminal breaking into the museum that night," I suggest.

This catches many of the people in the room off-guard. I'm thinking it may be a stretch, myself... but this could honestly make a lot of sense. Maybe there truly wasn't anyone else involved.

"Mr. Wright," the Judge addresses me, "How would that explain such grievous wounds in so many different ways?"

That makes me wonder. Could there be an explanation?

"Well," Maya speaks to me, "We know whatever happened had to end with the statue falling on him. So that much is certain..."

Sae enters the conversation. "Well... what if he was standing right next to one of the paintings being displayed on wooden easels? If the statue accidentally tipped over, hit him on the head, and pushed his body over the easel to crush it, that could potentially explain the head injury, the body-wide injuries, and the wooden puncture wound."

The prosecution seems to think otherwise. I hear Yashin's first objection, and I get the feeling that I'll be hearing it a lot more in the times to come.

\---(Music End)---

\---Music:  [ Rainy Rose (God Hand) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9_hVK_qNzE) \---

Yashin has everyone's attention. She raises her arm as if to point at our direction, but simply raises three of her fingers. "There are three reasons that this had to involve another party. The first and most obvious is this: if there were stolen items, and the victim ended up dying at the scene of the crime, then the stolen items would have been on his person, and would have never left the building."

Oh... shoot.  _ We _ know that the reason the items are missing is because the curator was selling them off. But no one else knows that, so this is a solid assertion from their point of view--one we can't disprove, at the moment.

"Number two:" Yashin keeps going, presenting evidence, "Take a look at the  **Crime Scene Photographs** . "If you look to the corner of this picture, you can see the damaged easel was broken was several meters away from the body where the statue fell. He couldn't have fallen on it."

Something about that doesn't seem right... how did the wood end up stabbing him, then? Maybe there really was a fight there, and a second party intentionally stabbed him...?

"And for the hat trick: parts of the statue which fell have been ground into dust. The prosecution firmly asserts that such a phenomena would be strictly impossible without someone else tampering with the crime scene and destroying parts of the statue. All three of these fundamental facts lend to the theory that another person must have been there."

\---(Music End)---

"My word!" the Judge gasps, "Parts of the statue were ground to dust, but to what end? That is such an oddly specific thing to alter."

"We aren't certain at this moment in time," Yashin speaks with a grin that doesn't fit the tone of her statement. It does, however, fit along with the smugness of her following statement: "But we're confident that we'll get our answer if we just ask the defendant himself why he altered the crime scene."

Ok, I HAVE to say something to rebut that.

"There's a limit to how far you can push your assumptions!" I contest, "This trial has yet to prove a single thing as to whether or not the defendant was even involved at all!"

"That's right!" Maya tags in, "He wasn't anywhere close to the scene of the crime!"

The Judge does his meditation on the progression of the trial. "I do believe we've reached a stopping point for discussion of the murder and cause of death. There's no question that another party was present. However, at this point in this hearing, I believe it is crucial information to discover who that was and what exactly they did. Detective Ritsu, what did your investigation discover in regards to Kurusu-san's involvement?"

"Of course, your Honor," Ritsu complies.

I can feel myself gulp and my blood pump faster. This could be a real turning point in the trial. I'm fully expecting them to blow the lid off of Akira's secret past. I've tried to mentally prepare for it, but I still feel extremely anxious knowing how much more difficult this will be to prove him innocence.

_ To be continued... _

__ \---Music:  [ Jingle ~ That's All For Today ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f10LFrjzM30) \---

_ Would you like to save your game?  _

__ __ _ Yes No _


	2. Chapter 6b: Wake Up, Get Up, Turnabout There

_April 13th, 8:24 am_

 _Tokyo District Court, Courtroom No. 2_

All of us at the defense table are extremely tense. As detective Ritsu takes the stand once again, this time to testify about Akira directly... we all realize that there's roughly millions of ways that this could go poorly for us. We'll just have to wait and hear what the detective says, and pray that the prosecution hasn't found anything to truly link to Akira.

\-- Night in the Woods --

\---Music: [ Bonfire (Persona Q) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKrCk1D9c4Y)\---

"At the scene of the crime, we found a museum security guard and the museum's curator.

They heard a loud crash, the guard pulled the alarm, and both of them came to see what had happened.

Officers arrived at the scene, while several patrolling cars made rounds around the immediate area.

The defendant was found about a kilometer away from the museum, climbing through bushes.

Even aside from suspicious behavior, his belongings strongly suggested criminal intent, leading to his arrest."

\---(Music End)---

Maya, Sae, and I, all look at each other.

I think all three of us have noticed the extremely major oversight in the prosecution's reasoning.

"The defense seems eager to begin the cross-examination," the Judge notes, "Very well. The defense may proceed."

\---Music: [ Bonfire (Persona Q) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKrCk1D9c4Y)\---

"Did I hear the first half of that correctly?" Maya consults quietly with us, "Did he just say that there were two others at the scene of the crime...?"

"I can't even fathom what the prosecution is thinking right now," Sae murmurs gravely, "It's such a blindingly obvious hole in their entire assumption. It almost makes me feel like we'd be going into a trap to pursue that."

I contemplate our options. "Well, the alternative would be asking about the end of that testimony for more details about Akira's arrest."

"And that's a ground we'd want to tread _very_ carefully," Maya whispers.

"Agreed," Sae nods, "The less we focus on Akira-kun, the better." 

Having reached consensus, it's time to begin.

"Detective," I address, "Did you just testify that there were already two people at the scene of the crime? How in the world are those two not under suspicion as well?"

Yashin, very rapidly, cuts off our line of attack.

"Mr. Wright," she speaks, ready to give a counterargument, "They are the ones who discovered the body and reported the crime."

"How does that make it any less supicious?" Sae pushes back, "In fact, the true culprit could have alerted the police to try and hide their involvement."

"It's much more plausible they were simply doing their jobs," Yashin posits, as if this whole matter were trivial.

"The museum was closed," I assert, "Why would either of them have been there at that point in time?"

"Easily explainable," Yashin dismisses, "The Sniffsonian is owned and managed by the curator, who can be within his own establishment whenever he wishes, and the security guard naturally would have been patrolling the building to make sure everyone had left for the night."

"Both of those situations present perfect opportunities to commit this crime," Sae deduces rationally, "Likewise, both could be perfect alibis for either of them to hide behind!"

Yashin shakes her head. "When one considers all of the factors of this entire event, it becomes plainly common sense as to why the defendant is much more likely to be the guilty party--as opposed to the two witnesses who, as you stated, have justifiable alibis..."

She's really going on the offensive. Her pressure is making it hard to try and discuss the other two witnesses when she's focused so strongly on Akira. "And what exactly is so guilty about our client," I reverse, "Who was comparatively nowhere NEAR the scene of the crime?"

Yashin chuckles. "Isn't it the witness you're supposed to be asking the questions during these cross-examinations? Just visit the testimony again and figure it out yourself."

Perhaps I've trodden too far. I was really hoping to avoid having to discuss more about Akira. But, there aren't many more directions we could reasonably go with this testimony... and it will be suspicious if I avoid the topic forever.

"It's ok," Sae assures with a warm tone, "We can trust Akira-kun."

Her encouragement has undertone to it, as if she's trying to tell me that we can go ahead and talk about Akira's involvement and she trusts that it won't backfire.

"You can do this, Nick," Maya says to pump me up, clenching her fists with her arms at right angles. 

Well. Here goes something I hope I won't regret...

"Detective Ritsu, we have to visit the last statement which you testified," I speak as I cling as tightly as possible to the facade of confidence, "Can you go into more detail onto how Akira was found that night?"

"Sure can. What in particular do you need to know more about?" he asks politely.

Now is not a good time to realize I hadn't thought that far ahead. Better think of something, quick.

I scratch my chin. "Erm, well, you specifically mentioned the belongings. What was that about?"

Yashin jumps in yet again.

\---(Music End)---

Yashin reveals an evidence bag with some kind of device inside of it. "Well, he was found wearing a pair of **Night Vision Googles** on his head, for instance."

*!*

\---Music: [ High Pressure (Persona 5) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QqOYerJSc1k)\---

Oh no. This is bad. This is really bad. How in the hell are we going to talk our way out of this one...

The Judge is as curious as any of us. "Is that true?" he questions, wide-eyed, "That certainly IS a very suspicious device to be using, especially under the alleged circumstances!"

The tension among us at the defense table thickens to suffocating levels. Is this how it's going to end...?

... No. It isn't. I have to get a hold of myself. Akira is counting on us. If I give up now... never mind, that is definitely never going to happen. We haven't even begun to fight back yet. I have to think of possible excuses. He was wearing them while taking a hike around the park? I don't know, that may be my best bet. 

\---(Music End)---

I hear a completely new voice speak up from the gallery. Someone in the audience with a raspy voice and a rugged tone succeeds at obtaining everyone's attention.

"I think you folks have been getting quite a bit ahead of yourselves, here." 

\---Music: [ Layer Cake ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQ77kdlx6dM)\---

A man wearing a grey trench coat and a grey hat stands up, and now all eyes are on him. He has a yellow pair of ear protectors as if he's planning on going to do loud construction work or something. His appearance seems shady at first glance, but he carries an air about himself that gives a strange, fatherly impression. "I think I can shed some light on your little goggles dilemma," he announces. His personality seems very direct.

"Hmm? And who might you be?" the Judge inquires, somewhat concerned for his proceeding being interrupted, but more curious as to what this gentleman has to say. 

"Name's Munehisa Iwai," he introduces himself.

"I see. Iwai-san, I assume you have something you wish to confide to the court? Did you witness the events of this crime, perhaps?"

"Easy there, bud. I never said all that," he explains, "I just wanted to speak up and say that those **Night Vision Goggles** were purchased from my shop. That kid sittin' over there on the defense side was at my store on the night this all went down."

*!*

"Is that so?" Yashin asks, humoring the interjection. "The defendant was physically detained on a sidewalk near the woods. How could he have possibly been elsewhere?"

"Didn't say that either," the man returns bluntly, beginning to walk through the seating and down from the gallery, "I just know that I saw the kid earlier that night, and can explain exactly why he was running around in the woods that night."

As he has been speaking, he has already walked his way to the witness stand and has planted himself firmly there with unshakable confidence. This guy is beyond straight-to-the-point, nobody even asked him to testify yet. I don't particularly think he was waiting for the invitation at all.

"This is highly irregular," the Judge comments, skeptical of the validity of this turn of events, "Though I suppose hardly the first time an unexpected witness has came forth during a trial. Where does the prosecution stand on new testimony? Would a short recess suffice to prepare the witness to testify?"

"No need to be so formal," the man in grey subverts, "Just need to put a thing or two on record and then I'm gone."

Yashin's expression is hard to read, though it seems contemplative. "Likewise, I don't think there's need for any pausing," she finally states, "Any new information is appreciated. My job is to figure out who killed the victim and make sure that justice is meted."

"Very well," the Judge nods, "I shall allow Iwai-san to testify."

"I won't take up too much of your time," he assures. The speed he speaks at is slightly slower than most, and comes off as laid back, but his tone is gruff and serious. 

\---(Music End)---

  
  


\-- Untouchable Explanation --

\---Music: [ Bonfire (Persona Q) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKrCk1D9c4Y)\---

"The kid's a former part-time worker at my shop. He's visiting from out of town and stopped by to say hi.

It's all on camera, too. He came in and I let him mess around with some new merchandise.

He's friends with my son, Kaoru. Almost like a big brother to him. The two of them went out to the park to test the goggles.

When it got dark, I drove by and picked up Kaoru. But the kid said he'd be ok cutting through the woods to walk back home."

\---(Music End)--- 

The Judge seems to be processing the testimony. "Hmm. If that is true, surprisingly, it _would_ give context to why the defendant may have been sneaking around with night vision goggles. I will now allow the defense to cross-examine the witness."

"There may be no need, your Honor," Sae replies back respectfully. "Nothing in this testimony contradicts any of the established facts of this crime."

The Judge is fairly surprised. "Am I to understand the defense is conceding the right to cross-examine the witness?"

"The prosecution takes no issue with accepting this testimony," Yashin unexpectedly agrees with a smile, "It's a reasonable explanation, and it sounds like the witness has camera footage to back it up."

"So we're done here," Iwai-san states, and he calmly walks back to his seat in the gallery just as abruptly as when he left it. On the way back, he makes eye contact with Akira. They don't do anything as obvious or overt as physical gesturing but I still feel a strong sense of camaraderie between the two of them. They are clearly close, and this testimony is very convenient to our case. I can tell they must have planned for this in advance, to have Iwai testify. I suppose Akira wouldn't be the leader of a world renowned group of thieves if he weren't the type to have back up plans and fail-safes. 

\---Music: [ Bonfire (Persona Q) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKrCk1D9c4Y)\---

Yashin's disposition stays the same, but her words become sharp. "However, I would like to state that an explanation as to why the defendant had night vision goggles... is not an explanation as to what he could have been using them for."

"Drat! She has a point..." Maya bemoans. 

"I see," the Judge reflects, "Even if there is camera footage earlier that day of the defendant obtaining the goggles, it does nothing to change the fact that he was found using them that night by police."

"Precisely, your Honor," Yashin nods. "In that sense, though this testimony sheds light on explaining a few details, it isn't truly an alibi, either."

"But at the same time... it does nothing to link the crime to Akira," Maya mentions to me.

She's right. I'll take her point and make it into an announcement to the court. "The defense asserts that being found that night with night vision goggles on still does not in any way connect the defendant to events inside of the museum."

The Judge shakes his head. "If we are being reasonable, it is extremely hard to look past Akira's location, behavior, and possession of the night vision goggles as being coincidental."

The Judge seems to be leaning towards siding with the prosecution on this, shoot. There has to be a way we can deflect the prosecution's arguments. How can I turn this around? 

"Nick," Maya calls to me, "I bet we could fight assumptions with assumptions. If the prosecution is jumping to conclusions based on what seems likely, maybe we can find things that make Akira's involvement UNlikely!"

Sae holds her chin. "The prosecution's point of view is that Akira is the criminal who broke into the museum to steal things. There has to be at least one factor that we can use to discredit that viewpoint."

Maya tilts her head as she considers everything herself. "Hmm... come to think of it, if they think that Akira is a thief, then we can use their own argument from earlier against them...!"

"Maya... I think you're on to something!" I smile and nod to her, before raising my voice to address the entire court. "Your Honor, the defense has a counterargument to these assertions."

"With such certainty in your voice, it sounds like you have a very strong point to make," the Judge comments, "What detail do you speak of?"

The prosecution is basing their thoughts off of Akira's location, the fact that he was sneaking around, and the items he had (or, didn't have) on his person. If we assume that Akira was the true thief trying to rob the museum, then something in that chain of logic would be inconsistent with the facts. Time to flip the prosecution's arguments right back at them. The detail which I should discuss is...

  * Akira's location
  * Akira's behavior
  * Akira's belongings



\---(Music End)---

"The defense would like to point out something very important about Akira's belongings when he was found!" I announce. "So far, we know that he had night vision goggles... but what else did he have on his person?"

I can tell Yashin is perplexed. "Er, his wallet...? Nothing else of particular note."

"That there in an of itself puts serious doubt onto your assertion that the defendant broke into the museum last night!" I assert, ready to roll right into my next point and connect them, "And, recall your very own argument a short while ago as to why the victim could not have been the thief. You said yourself, he had nothing stolen on his person. And, what did you just tell me about the defendant?"

*!*

\---Music: [ Phoenix Wright ~ Objection! 2004 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0B-ynUdTOfM)\---

"Ah!" the Judge speaks as the logic clicks in his head, "Intriguing! I suppose that is a rather strong point. Whoever allegedly stole from the museum that night would have had stolen property in their possession."

Yashin tries to bite back.

"That's easily explainable!" she pushes back, "It's very clear that the thievery plans must have gone south! A murder would very quickly throw a wrench into any kind of premeditated burglary plans, and he must have completely bailed on his plans to steal in order to run away from the scene of the crime!"

I put my fists to my hips confidently. "Then, who exactly stole from the museum, Miss Yashin...?"

*!*

She's totally silent. We must have really hit a golden train of thought to be able to make her speechless. Seeing as she has nothing to say, I continue talking. " _Someone_ stole _something_ from the museum that night, according to the museum curator. If it wasn't the victim, and you just told us that it wasn't the defendant... then it had to have been someone totally different."

As the discussion heats up, so does the gallery, based on their hushed chatter in response to our argument.

"Your entire claim to our client's involvement is the suspicion that he was the person who illegally broke into the museum. But, if someone else was involved with any of the crimes tonight, that makes it all the less likely that Kurusu-san had anything to do with the museum incident."

The Judge's eyes remain closed as he deeply thinks on what he has heard. After a brief quiet period, he finally gives his thoughts. "So, when all is said and done, we have nothing which conclusively points to the defendant being related to the crimes at the museum. But, based on the circumstances of his apprehension, there is reasonable doubt as to whether or not Kurusu-san was truly uninvolved," The Judge nods firmly. "I do believe we've reached a standstill on this subject."

\---(Music End)---

Sae takes a breath of relief, and then confides quietly in Maya and I. "That's good. A stalemate isn't truly in our favor, but we should be fine in the meantime as long as we keep the heat off of Akira-kun."

Yashin seems to have the kind of look someone has when trying to solve a tricky puzzle. "Or, perhaps whatever was stolen he left in the woods somewhere to come back for later...? Regardless, your Honor, the prosecution wishes to once again point out how ridiculously suspicious it is to have found the defendant dressed like a burglar, wearing night vision goggles, and sneaking around in the woods within a short distance of the scene of the crime... are we truly supposed to shrug and ignore all of that? "

Sae shows us her objection voice in practice as she jumps in.

"You're grasping at air at this point. Any further assumption past what we've established is complete conjecture, plain and simple," Sae asserts.

"... Fair," Yashin concedes respectfully, "The fact that this feels less like debating and more like bickering tells us that we aren't going to get anywhere."

"Now, if we've blocked off their line of attack towards Akira..." Maya mutters to herself, "That mean's now is the perfect time to bring up the other two people. The prosecution has been dodging the curator and the security guard and their involvement, and she's claiming they're not suspicious. I think I've just figured out a way to pull them into the discussion and prove otherwise, though!"

\---Music: [ Reasoning (Persona 4) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF-AtVPfTjk)\---

Maya seems to be flowing with energy as she bids for attention from the court. "Question!" Maya shouts, raising her hand, "Detective Ritsu! Did the curator specify what was stolen?"

The detective wasn't expected to be addressed, so he takes a moment to pull out a paper list. "Well, he insisted that there were several important pieces of artwork taken from his museum over the last few weeks."

WE know that he's trying to hide his own guilt at his black market dealings, but no one else knows that... and without that day planner or any documents to prove his dealings, we can't pursue that line of attack. 

Maya seems to have a different approach, though. "So, detective, the curator is fully aware of the fact that artworks are being stolen from the museum, is that right?"

"Well, naturally," Ritsu nods, "And he seemed pretty passionate about making sure the thief is brought to justice."

"Why in the world would he be sending his entire security staff home at night if that's the case?" Maya questions.

*!*

"He did what now?" Yashin blinks, honestly confused.

"I mean, think about it!" Maya continues, "Why would there have only been a single security guard there with him? ESPECIALLY when the whole place has had thefts and should have been on high alert?"

I see... Maya's question was angled in just such a way that we that we can still try and rope the curator into this without having any direct evidence about his shady business.

I nod. "Thanks for the assist Maya. I'm going to go all in on this opportunity you've given us," I assure her before rushing right back into the fray. "Your Honor. The curator's lack of proper security measures is not only baffling, but unsafe for both himself and his museum! The fact that only he and one other security guard was there makes his entire presence at the scene of the crime is severely suspicious!"

\---Music: [ Logic and Tricks ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4mPHUWdgXY)\---

Yashin must have finally run out of steam to keep pursuing Akira, as she has nothing to say against this.

The Judge nods his head. "I agree. And, we are at an impasse as to the defendant's relation to the crimes, at that. At this point I am certain that we need to move our attention to the involvement of these two witnesses."

"I absolutely agree, your Honor," Sae nods, taking the baton from us. "We've spent entirely too long arguing about the woods nearby while we've hardly even scratched the surface of the museum, the actual location of the crime! We need more details on virtually every aspect of the situation. Why was there only one security guard there? What was the victim doing there after closing? What exactly was the curator up to? Testimony is what we need right now, and the curator of the museum is the perfect one to start explaining himself."

"Indeed," the Judge confirms. "Detective, I assume the two witnesses have been prepared to testify?"

"Well, sort of," Ritsu says meekly. 

Yashin enters to explain. "We interviewed them both about the incident. However, only one of them has agreed to testify for the trial as of this moment."

"Is that so...?" the Judge blinks in surprise.

"I'll let them tell you," Ritsu defers, "I'll go get them and bring them before the court."

"They should have done this from the start..." Maya pouts in frustration.

"That would have been too easy and would have made too much sense," I sarcastically sigh.

\---(Music End)---

In a matter of moments, both of the individuals in question are lead into the courtroom by the detective.

"Ah," the Judge speaks as if reaching clarity, "So you two must be the witnesses of the murder."

"That they are," Yashin nods. "Would you two kindly give us your names and occupations?

\---Music: [ Restlessness ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1owvnnHhPSI)\---

"Hebi Hibiki. Curator of the Sniffsonian Museum," is the unexpectedly direct first response. Hebi seems to have discarded his frivolity in favor of a more serious, deadpan expression. If I had to describe his face in a word, "unamused" comes to mind.

The guard is much more emotive in comparison, and is actually quite nervous. "Yurui Kuchibiru, your Honor... I'm just a regular security guard at the museum."

"I see," the Judge replies, "So it is to my understanding that only one of you wishes to testify today?"

" _Yurui_ ," is the curator's incredibly rapid snap of a reply, but his actual speaking of the rest of his sentence is slow and deliberate, "Is more than capable of speaking on my behalf," is his explanation.

"This is really weird, Nick," Maya mentions to me in a hushed tone, "Hebi's not usually this serious. And, maybe it's just me, but didn't he always mispronounce that guard's name before? Why is he acting so differently? It's creepy..."

She has a point... he's usually so full of, er, "enthusiasm," I'll call it. His style of speech and occasional mispronunciations had me thinking that Japanese was just a second language for him, but just now his voice and speech were so deliberate that I can tell he's completely fluent. This is peculiar indeed.

"And the fact that he doesn't seem to want to testify sets off all sorts of red flags, I'd say," Sae whispers cautiously, "Do you think he might be the real culprit?"

"I hadn't thought about it until just now, but," I begin, "This whole time I've simply been trying to prove that Akira isn't the criminal. I was so laser focused on that, I hadn't even stopped to really consider who the real murderer might be. I wouldn't doubt it for a second if the curator ends up being a part of all of these crimes, even the murder..."

Maya agrees completely. "Come to think of it, the victim literally told us that he was searching for Hebi that day. I bet trying the find the curator was his entire reason for being at the museum after closing that night."

"Based on what we know... Hebi is probably our prime suspect," I conclude, and we all acknowledge the fact that we're on the same page here. 

While our defense team has been consulting quietly, the proceedings have continued on. The Judge moves right along. "I see. So, Kuchibiru-san. You will be providing testimony today?"

"That's right, your Honor," he says with a hesitance which achingly tries to hide unease. "I was the one who pulled the alarm that night, and I was the first person to arrive at the scene."

Now that things are back on logical track, the Judge seems to be a tad more serious. "That certainly would make your description of events very important to determining the truth of these crimes. Please explain to the court what you witnessed at the Sniffsonian on the night of April 11th."

\---(Music End)---

  
  


\---Music: [ Bonfire (Persona Q) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKrCk1D9c4Y)\---

\-- The Graveyard Shift --

"I was making rounds as I usually do at closing time, making sure all of the visitors had left the museum.

I thought I had heard noises in the wax museum on the third floor, but it was my imagination, as far as I could tell...

I walked down the stairs of the atrium, as my shift was over and I wanted to head home for the night. 

But then, I heard a crash from the ground floor. I pulled the alarm, rushed down, and found the victim under a statue."

\---(Music End)---

The Judge seems tightly hinged on his composure but still irritated. "Prosecution, why did you not bring this witness from the very start? This testimony is clearly more relevant to the actual murder!"

Yashin seems like she wants to be apologetic, but instead comes off as unaffected. "The prosecution believes the defendant to be the guilty party. His activities that night are still our foremost concern."

The Judge maintains skepticism. "Regardless, understanding the actual crime itself and what took place is crucial to passing a proper verdict. I would thank you to spend the court's time and focus on events which are most relevant to our understanding of this crime. With that said... I will now allow opportunity for the defense to cross-examine this testimony."

\---Music: [ Bonfire (Persona Q) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKrCk1D9c4Y)\---

"There's a lot to break down here," Sae establishes with her finger and thumb to her chin, keeping to a hushed whisper only we can hear, "As usual, we need to be careful about which statements we pursue... things will go south if we start asking about the noises on the third floor."

Maya seems to disagree. "Won't we be missing valuable testimony though? What if the criminal was on the third floor at some point?"

I bring my voice to a point where it's barely audible, careful not to be overheard. "Well, we already know Akira was there... as was Mask☆DeMasque, presumably," I consider, "And, as far as we know, the actual murder would have happened on a lower floor."

We all hums as if in group meditation. "Well," Sae finally announces, "I don't think it's likely the true culprit of the murder would have been on the third floor, so far away from the scene of the crime."

"Hmm... I suppose I see what you mean," Maya eases up, "We should focus on prying more about the scene."

Sounds like a plan, we'll focus in on the last statement. Time to get this cross examination going.

"Kuchibiru-san," I address formally, "I understand you said you were the one who pulled the alarm. But, I think the court needs a better idea of where you actually were when this happened. Where exactly was the alarm lever you pulled?"

"Er, the first floor balcony, if I recall," he answers back. "I started at the third floor, and when I decided it was time to go home, I was taking the stairs back down to the ground floor so I could leave. I think I made it to the first floor when I heard the crash."

The Judge seems keen on fact checking the credibility of this. "Detective Ritsu, can the police confirm Kuchibiru-san's statement?"

The detective, standing on the sidelines of the trial, as usual, nods his head. "That's right. It was the first floor where the alarm was pulled. We checked it for prints, and the prints on it matched the witness'. At some point that night, he definitely pulled that alarm."

Sae seems to be considering all possibilities. "In theory, someone could have committed the murder, then ran up the stairs to pull the alarm afterwards. I don't know if the alarm location necessarily rules out involvement."

Yashin jumps in yet again.

"You heard the detective himself when he testified," she asserts, "Kuchibiru-san was at the location of the murder when the police arrived. With the layout of the atrium, all of the staircases are spread out very widely, and the distance from the nearest set of stairs and the crime scene was fairly long. The witness could have feasibly been on the first floor, pulled the alarm, and ran downstairs to the scene by the time the police arrived. If the witness had first been at the scene, he wouldn't have had time to run up a floor to pull the alarm only to run back down. The police arrived extremely quickly to the scene, and he wouldn't have had enough time to make a round trip from the ground to the alarm and back. It's just not possible."

"Should we buy this, Nick?" Maya questions, "It seems like a fair argument, but I'm not sure..."

I don't see a reason to question it, so I nod. "You and I can confirm from experience that the stairs are a real drag and take forever to get around in that atrium. And, to be honest, I wasn't really considering the security guard as a suspect... so this doesn't really hurt or help our case."

"That's the problem, however," Sae mentions, "That it doesn't help us to get anywhere. I'm astounded that this trial has been going on for so long and we've still barely touched on what actually happened at the scene. Should we keep asking more questions, or move on to a different statement to try for more information elsewhere?"

That's a good question. Should we...

  * Keep on the alarm location discussion
  * Ask about the crime scene location
  * Let up and examine a different statement



With that, I'll segue into the next important topic. "The defense is willing to accept that the witness likely pulled the alarm first and then headed downstairs to the crime scene," I establish, "However, Kuchibiru-san, if you did make your way to the scene after the crime had happened, then it's important that you go into detail about the actual state of the crime scene as you found it."

"Oh, well, I can certainly try my best to remember," the security guard offers.

\---(Music End)---

\---Music: [ Bonfire (Persona Q) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKrCk1D9c4Y)\---

\-- Squashed by the Statue --

"After pulling the alarm instinctively, I looked over the balcony railing to try and see what had happened below.

Over in one of the roped off areas, I saw someone collapsed underneath a statue! 

I thought I was the only person left in the building, so this was extremely shocking!

I ran down the stairs as fast as I could, but when I got up close and saw the damage, I realized that it was too late.

Mr. Hibiki showed up a few minutes later, and we both waited until the police arrived."

\---(Music End)---

The Judge seems empathetic. "That must have been shocking, indeed. But, your quick thinking in pulling the alarm was what allowed the police to appear so quickly."

"Yes, your Honor," Yurui responds, "As soon as I heard the loud noise, I acted right away. No matter what caused it, there could have been danger, I thought! And, sure enough..."

Yashin closes her eyes. "Indeed. Thanks to Kuchibiru-san, there wasn't much of a window of time at all before the police were all over the scene."

"Hmm. Did we ever establish the estimated time of death?" the Judge asks, "I can only assume it must have been just moments before the alarm was pulled."

"It's in the **Autopsy Report** , your Honor," detective Ritsu answers, "Estimated between 9:10 and 9:20 pm. The alarm was pulled at 9:17. Then at 9:24, before we even got to the crime scene, I heard over the radio that Kurusu-san had been apprehended. We had our feet in the museum by 9:32. I'd say we made pretty good time!"

The Judge seems to contemplate the explanations being given. "Even if it was only fifteen minutes, there's a lot that could still happen in that amount of time. It's unfortunate the security cameras weren't functioning. We'll have to piece together what truly happened in this short interval. With that said, now is the perfect time for the defense to begin cross-examining the witness' statements."

\---Music: [ Bonfire (Persona Q) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKrCk1D9c4Y)\---

Maya's enthusiasm encourages all of us. "Now we're finally getting to the important parts!" she notes.

I stop to think. "There's a lot to this testimony, so we should consider where we would like to start."

We all brainstorm as a group, and eventually I'm the first to speak. "The statement about him being the only one in the building... it's way too strange that this guy would have been the only guard there covering the whole museum."

"That's exactly what I was pointing out earlier," Maya agrees, "There should have been an entire security staff. This whole incident seems fishy!"

Sae still seems to be reflecting on the testimony. "We also need more information on the Hibiki's involvement," she advises, "If he was in the museum too, then his whereabouts are crucial."

"So we have multiple directions for approach," I recognize, "That's very good. Let's start from the top."

I look at the witness at the stand and begin our first line of questioning. "Kuchibiru-san. You say that no one else was supposed to be in the building. How is that possible? Does the museum not have an entire staff of security?"

"Well, we do, normally," the security guard tries to explain, "It's just, uh... once the museum closes, we all go home for the night, right? I mean, that's obvious."

"That seems highly irregular that a museum full of priceless art wouldn't have an overnight security staff," Sae pressures skeptically. 

"Oh, well, I mean, I was on watch duty that night, so that was my job," he seems to try and establish, but his haste in speaking and his overall demeanor lead me to think he's not being totally truthful.

"Why weren't you in some back office watching the cameras or something?" Maya asks very directly, "You would have known that something was wrong and seen the victim in the building long before he ended up dead!"

"Erm... well. You see. I was..." he tries to communicate, but he seems to be struggling, "I just had a weird feeling that something was wrong, so I did one last sweep of the museum. So I went out exploring. And, well, I guess my gut instinct was right considering everything that ended up happening... gosh, I wish I had just went home like I was supposed to."

This guy is getting shadier by the minute, and I think I just noticed a slip up. I need to say something about this inconsistency.

"Hang on, there," I call to him, "We need to backpedal.. Kuchibiru-san, the way you just worded a specific statement... specifically, how you said that you wish you had gone home like you 'were supposed to.' Why were you supposed to go home if you were assigned overnight duty?"

He blinks a few times and struggles to find words. "Well, erm... ok, so I wasn't exactly assigned night duty. I was, er-"

Sae jumps into the conversation just as aggressively as I did.

"So if you weren't on night duty, another guard should have been, isn't that right?" Sae asserts.

"Well, no, not that night," he tries to explain, sounding as if he's trying not to stumble over his words, "That night, well... Mr. Hibiki had instructed all of the staff to have the night off."

\---(Music End)---

*!*

\---Music: [ Telling the Truth 2001 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TIZH3Ur0zcQ)\---

Sae's eyes narrow. "Somehow I doubt he would have done that to be a nice boss," she mumbles.

"Did he give any reason as to why?" I further question.

"Well, not specifically," Yurui answers, "Every once in a while, he just lets the whole staff leave early..." 

Yurui knows that I can tell exactly what he's hiding, because he's the one who told us the rumors about the curator's midnight sales in the first place. This may be our chance to bring the curator into all of this for the court!

I clear my throat and look at Yurui, planning my next words carefully. "Kuchibiru-san, I need you to be very specific with your details. What was going on that night that would cause the curator to send home his entire staff?"

Yurui doesn't answer. 

"Kuchibiru-san, if you're hiding anything from the court, you need to come clean," I add. "There were no night staff, the curator told everyone to go home, and you yourself were not supposed to be there either... the longer these questions go unanswered, the more suspicious it makes you."

He's quite a nervous person to begin with, so it looks downright uncomfortable to see him even more visibly nervous. He's still not answering, so I'll have to start suggesting answers of my own. "Kuchibiru-san. It doesn't seem like ANYONE on the museum staff was where they were supposed to be, that night. And with you constantly changing your tune, it's starting to seem like you're covering for someone."

"That's... that's just not true. I don't have any reason to cover for anyone!" he pushes back.

However, there are plenty of people he could be covering for. The real question is, out of all of the involved parties, who is the most suspicious in this scenario? Was it the missing security staff not doing their jobs, Yurui the security guard snooping around the museum late, or Hebi Hibiki--the curator who sent his whole security staff home so he could sell off artwork that wasn't his by the light of the moon? Out of those, which of them clearly has the most to hide?

"Kuchibiru-san," I continue on, "I think that you were covering for..."

  * The other guards
  * Yourself
  * The curator



"I think this one's obvious, Nick!" Maya adds, sounding pumped, "He has to be covering for the curator!"

Yashin has gone quite some time without saying anything, but she finally seems ready to put in her thoughts. "The prosecution will admit that it is very strange that the curator would have told his entire staff to leave early, yet stay at museum himself. We mentioned this while questioning him, but he explained that the museum had just been upgraded with a new security system, and because of budget cuts he couldn't keep the museum staffed around the clock like he used to."

"I don't buy that at all," Maya crosses her arms, "I think that's just an excuse."

\---(Music End)---

The Judge has been listening carefully, and now is his moment to input his own opinion. "The curator of the museum seems to be a very important piece of this puzzle, and we know for certain that he was inside the museum by the time the police arrived. Were you aware of his location at the time?"

"I think I had a pretty good idea, I guess..." the security guard responds half-heartedly.

The Judge prepares to make a stern decree. "Kuchibiru-san, I think the entire court agrees that you need to elaborate on the involvement of your employer."

"Oh, well, sure, if you need me too, your Honor," he nods.

\---Music: [ Bonfire (Persona Q) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKrCk1D9c4Y)\---

"I thought I was the only person left in the building, but I think the curator may have been in his office upstairs.

He has a habit of giving us the night off from time to time, but I don't know the reason why."

"Hmm... this is really frustrating," Maya grumbles while softly conversing with us, "This testimony is just BEGGING to be shot down with the right evidence! If only we still had that day planner, or _something_ to prove that the curator is up to no good."

I feel like our hands are tied, and it's awful. "All we have is that **Sniffsonian Article** , and that can't really prove anything..."

"Hold on a moment," Sae speaks up, "He added quite a bit of testimony here, so let's try a different approach. The guard is claiming the curator was in his office... but is that really the truth? Maybe instead of proving the curator was involved, we can try to _dis_ prove the idea that he _wasn't_ involved."

Now there's a thought! Putting the confusing grammatical structure of that sentence aside... maybe we actually have something to prove that Hebi wasn't hiding out in his office. 

"Hey, Nick," Maya motions to me, "We know that certain other parties were in the office that night, and if Hebi were actually there, he would have seen them. Do you think we can present that card we found in the office as proof...?"

This isn't a choice we should take lightly. Beyond trying to keep Akira's name cleared, we have to remember that a different one of our friends had broken in that night as well. Implicating them as well could cause us issues down the line... but, we also have precious little means of trying to pursue the true culprit of the murder. If either the curator or the security guard are guilty, then we have to make sure their true involvements come to light.

Well. It's not like this person ever tries to hide the fact that they break in to places and steal things. In fact, he literally left his calling card. His appearance is going to be discovered sooner or later, so I may as well move forward.

"Your Honor," I announce, "The defense disagrees with the assertion that the museum curator was in his office that night, and we have proof!"

The Judge looks at us with both eyebrows raised, whereas Yashin looks at us with just one raised. Now that all eyes on the room are on me, I'll show my cards. Or, card. 

"I would like to present evidence of another party entirely being not only present in the museum that night, but actually went IN to the curator's office! There's no way the curator could be there as the witness has suggested! I would like to present to the court a **Calling Ca** -"

\---(Music End)---

A laugh that I haven't heard in quite some time cuts me off before I can even finish my sentence, and a very familiar echo rings against the walls of the courtroom. 

##  **_"Aha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!"_**

"What in the world?" the Judge asks with exasperation, "What is the meaning of this...?"

\---Music: [ Gyakuten Meets Orchestra - Villain Suite (Mask☆DeMasque Theme starting at 4:10) ](https://youtu.be/MpdAHJpZHs0?t=250)\---

As the silhouette of a caped, green figure descends from the skylight of the courtroom, I recognize that I no longer need to present **Mask☆DeMasque's Calling Card** , because he's going to introduce himself. My only question is, what is he doing here?!

This must be twice as shocking to everyone here who isn't familiar with the world renowned phantom thief... I mean, even Maya, the Judge, and I are all shocked! And we all recognize him! Now, expecting him to appear in court? THERE'S the shocker.

"Salutations, citizens of Tokyo!" the masked figure greets with thespian flair, "I am the illusive phantom thief, Mask☆DeMasque! I have much to discuss of what I have seen and experienced on the night of this crime. **Please, allow me the honor of testifying to the court!** "

*!*

*!*

*!*

"Wait...... HUUUUUHHHHH?????!!!!!"

As I try to pick up my jaw from the floor, I feel like this trial has officially gone off the rails. Even I don't know what to expect at this point, and I can only hope that whatever is to come will help our case...

_To be continued..._

\---Music: [ Jingle ~ That's All For Today ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f10LFrjzM30)\---

_Would you like to save your game?_

_Yes No_


	3. Chapter 6c: Wake Up, Get Up, Turnabout There

_ April 13th, 8:47 am _

_ Tokyo District Court, Courtroom No. 2 _

\---Music:  [ Mask☆DeMasque ~ Please Listen! ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9WZMfAGs4k) \---

This must be some kind of joke, right? Am I being pranked right now? Mask☆DeMasque himself just flew into the courtroom from the skylight on the ceiling. And he's currently flying around the room effortlessly while maintaining somewhat of a T-pose... how in the world DOES he do his flying trick?! I'm starting to think the guy can  _ actually fly _ .

"No matter how many years I've overseen trials," the Judge reminisces in his state of surprise, "And no matter how many times I've thought I've seen everything, somehow there will always be something new and unexpected. Mr. DeMasque, what in heaven's name are you doing in Japan?"

Yashin seems both entertained and curious at once. "Your Honor, do you know this person?"

The Judge nods. "If I recall, I acquitted this individual once. However, I thought he had hung up the mask or some such retirement of sorts."

"A ha ha ha ha!" Mask☆DeMasque laughs once more. "I commend you on your sharp memory, your Honor! However, the time was right and the situation called, and I recognized that it was the opportunity for one last encore!"

The Judge shakes his head to regain his usual firm demeanor. "I see. However, Mr. DeMasque, I do not appreciate my court being made into a spectacle. I'll be frank: what exactly is it you want to testify? Were you involved in the events of the night of the crime?"

"I think I can explain that, your Honor," Yashin volunteers. Her expression and behavior are somehow a fluid combination giddy excitement and calm analysis, marking for a somewhat subdued, amused disposition. "Judging by the evidence that the defense was about to present tells us all that we need to know. Tell me, Mr. Wright: is that one of this gentleman's calling cards? As in, the kind a phantom thief would leave?"

I nod. "Yes, you're exactly right. I was going to present  **Mask☆DeMasque's Calling Card** , but then the man himself came out of nowhere..."

"I see," she acknowledges, moving to her next point. "From that we can deduce that you found that card at the scene of the crime? If this is true, there's no telling how much this could change the situation. Things just became a lot more interesting."

Detective Ritsu speaks his mind as well. "Mr. Wright, where exactly did you find that calling card? We didn't see anything like that when we searched the area."

"It was in the curator's office!" Maya answers.

*!*

This revelation has the audience in a hushed stir, whispering quietly. Though hardly a loss of order, a crack from the Judge's gavel still regains everyone's immediate attention. "Settle down. Now, if that is to be believed, then you were within the curator's office that night? If that can be proven, then that puts a significant hole in the witness' suggestion that the curator himself was there."

Ritsu holds his chin. "Hmm... we didn't search that area at all, come to think of it. That room is three stories above and away from the scene of the crime. Nobody would have thought it could possibly be involved."

The Judge continues contemplating Mask☆DeMasque's bizarre incursion into the court. "Mr. DeMasque, if you were truly involved, then you are indeed a potential witness... but also a potential suspect."

"Think what you will!" Mask☆DeMasque dismisses, maintaining his grandiose speech, "Nevertheless, as a consequence to my entrance into the Sniffsonian, I did indeed witness that which transpired to an extent. I had business elsewhere in the museum, but from a high viewpoint, I in fact caught a glimpse of what happened below."

"If that is the case," the Judge frowns with disappointment, "On the grounds of burglary alone, we're going to have to detain you, Mr. DeMasque."

"And I shall applaud you if your efforts to do so succeed, your Honor! I simply wish to assist the court in determining the truth of these crimes, and then I will be on my way!"

The Judge is certainly not pleased. "Bailiff, fetch a ladder so we can reach this gentleman!"

"That's not going to work!" I shout, "A ladder will have nothing to lean against, what you'll need is a stepladder!"

"Now is not the time to force a superficial distinction, Nick!" Maya argues.

"Now is EXACTLY the time to!!" I fire back incredulously.

"Regardless," Yashin coughs, "With what precious little perspective we have on what actually happened, the prosecution is willing to humor Mask☆DeMasque's desire to testify, for what it's worth."

The Judge didn't expect that stance, based on his surprise. "Is that so? I suppose I can see the reason why, given the circumstances... but I'm extremely reluctant to allow such an audacious testimony!"

I look towards Maya and Sae. "What do we think about this, team?" I consult.

"If he's offering, we should take it," Sae nods, and quietly puts her thoughts to whisper, "Given his relationship with you two... I doubt he'd be trying to hinder us, and may actually want to help."

Maya nods as well. "Let's give him a chance!" she speaks with pep, "We need more details as it is!"

Hmm. I think I'm in agreement, so I announce our collective thoughts to the court. "Your Honor, the defense would be fine with accepting new testimony as well. With how little we know about the actual crime, anything could help."

The Judge doesn't take this decision lightly, and puts a few moments of hard thought into it. "Hrm. I will give Mr. DeMasque the benefit of the doubt. But, I must insist that we get his high-flying act under control!"

Yeesh. The sad thing is this won't even be the strangest testimony I've ever experienced. But, it's time to get going to see what the phantom thief himself wants to say.

\---(Music End)---

\---Music:  [ Looming Danger (Persona Q) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdceCROhB_Q) \---

\-- Beneath the DeMasque --

"On the night of April 11th, I had made my entrance into the Sniffsonian atrium from high above.

I could see--"

(I can't help but notice that for every statement Mask☆DeMasque makes, he floats to a different area in the air, and the poor Bailiff is getting quite a workout trying to keep up to set up the stepladder and reach him...)

"I could see through the glass ceiling as I prepared to enter, and saw the curator leave his office at 9:14 pm.

I found a way into his office, which took a minute or so, and I had what I came for by 9:15.

I hid near a potted plant until I was sure no one else was on the third floor with me, and made my escape.

As I flew through the air to take my leave, I heard a few loud noises in the distance.'

By 9:17, I was out of the museum and on my way."

\---(Music End)---

For a time, everyone in the room is silent, and the only noise is that of the bailiff panting and frantically hauling around his stepladder in hot pursuit of the masked thief. This testimony doesn't tell us much information, but it will be our jobs to pick more info out of it.

The Judge holds his hand to his head. "I can only imagine how difficult it would be to prosecute an international criminal in a situation like this... it's giving me a headache just thinking about it."

"And honestly, your Honor," Maya adds, "With how many crazy laws there are, like allowing you to oversee trials here for instance, I wouldn't be surprised if there are loopholes that would let Mask☆DeMasque off the hook!"

Heh, that's Maya for you. Always looking out for our friends. She's even taking the opportunity to try and keep Ron's name clear.

"I have to agree," Yashin confirms unexpectedly, "All of these transitions to a new court system are making things pretty insane. But, anyway! We'll deal with that later."

I seriously cannot get a read on her. Sometimes she's serious, sometimes she's joking. Predicting what she'll do or say feels futile... I just have to be on guard for anything she comes at us with.

"Indeed," the Judge nods, "The cross-examination of the witness takes precedence. Bailiff, please try a bit harder to detain Mask☆DeMasque for us!"

The bailiff sighs in a way that lets us know that the effort he is putting into his job is incongruous with his pay grade.

Yashin has something to say first, however.

"Monsieur DeMasque," she addresses, her choice of honorific sounding like she's having fun playing up the flair, "The prosecution finds it crucial to know just what exactly your reason for being in the museum that night was. You even mentioned that you had gotten 'what you came for,' at that. I have to request that you explain to the court what you stole."

"In due time, mademoiselle!" he returns, "When all is said and done, there will be a grand finale indeed. A ha ha ha ha ha..."

Geeze... I really hope that the Orb doesn't get mentioned or revealed here. We're assuming Akira is being watched already, and the Orb coming to light would set off all of the worst red flags about the Phantom Thieves and our objective to stop this conspiracy.

As usual, we'll just have to ask the right questions and avoid the dangerous topics, and hope for the best...

\---Music:  [ Looming Danger (Persona Q) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdceCROhB_Q) \---

Sae seems to be putting her brain to work already as she closes her eyes to think. "He said he saw the curator leave the office, right? We should ask for more details on that."

"Sounds good to start..." Maya agrees, but seems to be hesitant, "To be honest, I feel like something in this testimony seems important, but I'm not sure what."

We'll have to take things step by step, and maybe something will jump out at us.

I speak up, prepared to ask my first question. "Mr. DeMasque, if you had a clear view of the curator enough to see him leave the office, did you see where it was he was going?"

"To that, I am unsure," he answers, "All I know is he was going to a lower floor, because I saw him take a flight of stairs downward. For the entire while I was on the third floor, I never saw him return."

Sae contemplates the response. "So, that tells us that the entire time, the curator would had to have been on a different floor altogether..."

I hold my chin to think myself. "That's good information, but there's not much we can do with just that by itself. Maybe we should try a different approach."

"Oh, I think I've got it!" Maya announces to us with cheery pep, "Ask him about the noises he heard! If there was more than one loud noise, that has to mean something, right?"

"Ah! Good catch, Maya!" I commend, "Let's do just that."

I feel pretty confident about this plan of attack. "Mr. DeMasque, would you please go into a little more detail about the specific noises you heard that night?"

The masked thief smiles as he continues levitating through the air. "I wasn't focused entirely on them at the time, but they stand out in my memory nonetheless. Allow me to re-word my testimony, then."

"As I flew through the air to take my leave, I heard a loud 'THUD!' as if something heavy had hit the ground.

At the same time I heard I heard sharp 'SNAP' noises that sounded like breaking wood. 

Not even a minute later, there was an extremely loud 'SMASH!' which made me think that something large had been broken."

"Now we're getting somewhere!" Maya smirks with a fist pump, "Let's break this down based on what we know..."

Sae sounds ready to chime in. "We know that the statue fell on top of the victim... that certainly would have been a noise, alright. However... would a statue simply falling over really make such a  _ loud _ sound, though?"

"I had almost forgotten to mention, Niijima-san," I reply, "Maya and I discovered something in our investigating. We haven't had a chance to bring it up in the trial as of yet, but we believe the statue was actually located on the first floor."

Maya nods. "It didn't match up with the exhibits on the ground floor at all, but the first floor is a statue gallery! It's much more likely that the statue was up above rather than on the ground with the victim."

Sae's eyes widen, and this new information clearly has her looking at things differently. "If it had fallen from a great height, it could have very easily made a much louder sound! But... that only accounts for one of the noises Mask☆DeMasque heard. It could have been either the 'thud' or the 'smash.'"

The three of us all naturally reach the same question, which I verbalize for us. "What could the other noise have been...?"

Wait... hang on a moment. So, if falling from a great height makes a louder noise... and there were TWO noises... did two things fall?

*!*

"Guys, I think I've figured it out!" I speak to my friends, prepared to explain, "Maybe the victim himself wasn't on the ground floor, either?"

*!*

"What do you mean?" Sae questions, "Like, he was on a higher floor and he fell to the ground, too?"

"Let's think about the state the victim ended up in," I focus, "He had wounds all over, not just on the side the statue fell on. If someone had pushed him off of the balcony of a higher floor, that would explain how the body was in such a bad state."

"Him falling would explain the 'THUD!'" Maya reasons, "And then, if the statue was pushed over too and fell on top of him, that could have made the 'SMASH!' too!"

"This could turn this trial on its head completely!" I recognize, "But... we need to be able to back up this possibility with proof of some sort."

Maya points to the  **Atrium Exhibit Guide** . "We can use the guide to prove that the statue had to have been on the first floor, so that's no issue. But how would we be able to prove the  _ victim _ was there, too...?"

"That will be tough," Sae laments, "Everything we know about the scene supports that the involved parties were on the ground floor. There was even some sort of physical struggle down there, based on the broken easel..."

Think, Phoenix, think. That much is true, Mask☆DeMasque even heard the snapping wood. How exactly was that easel broken, anyway? 

Wait... let's think about the order of the sounds. There was a 'THUD' and a 'SNAP' at the same time, and then a 'SMASH' shortly after.

The thud and the snap happened at the same time...?

*!*

"Guys, I think I have an idea," I explain, "What if the victim fell ON the easel? That would explain the two noises happening at once, and would also explain why it was broken in the first place!"

"You may be on to something!" Sae nods eagerly, "That would also explain the puncture wound caused by a sharp piece of wood! I think we should go with this, Mr. Wright!"

Maya nods firmly as well. "That's true, I forgot all about the puncture wound in the autopsy. That's really solid support for our theory!"

Looks like we're all in favor of this new theory. Time to roll with it!

\---(Music End)---

\---Music:  [ Logic and Tricks ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4mPHUWdgXY) \---

"You Honor, the defense has reached a new conclusion based on Mask☆DeMasque's testimony and the evidence thus far. To start, I would like to direct everyone's attention to the Sniffsonian's own  **Atrium Exhibit Guide** . If you look carefully at the various pages, you'll see that the roped off area on the ground floor where the body was found was a gallery of paintings. A statue wouldn't have been there in the first place. The first floor, directly above it, was in fact a statue gallery! A fundamental misunderstanding we've had from the start is the statue's location. It wasn't pushed over during any altercations on the ground floor, but in fact fell onto the victim from above! The statue falling from so high up would make a noise that would perfectly describe the 'SMASH' that the witness heard!"

This new perspective gets the gallery gossiping as usually, with whispers filling the room. Yashin has her eyes closed and is thinking deeply--let's see her try and counter this!

"Mr. Wright," Yashin addresses me, "That guide isn't worth much. Exhibits in a museum are moved all the time for any number of reasons. Recall from the  **Crime Scene Photographs** that there was even a platform with wheels near where the statue was broken. It was clearly in the process of being moved, and we can't conclusively prove where it was or wasn't."

Not going to cut it, Yashin!

"Take a look at the very same  **Crime Scene Photographs** , and you'll see that the area was roped off completely! There's no way a statue that heavy could have been pushed along the ground into the area where it was found broken... the only other explanation would be if the statue fell from above, and happened to land in the roped-off area."

She holds her chin in thought. "Alright, that's a fair take. Let's assume that's what happened. How, in this case, would that explain it falling on the victim? We can tell the victim was on the ground floor, most likely fighting with someone roughly enough to have broken the easel and painting that were destroyed nearby. Are you telling me that someone managed to push over the statue from above and have it land exactly on top of a moving target? And how would that be possible in the first place, are you suggesting a third party was involved? For all we know, the witness could have pushed it over from his vantage point above!"

Time for some more evidence to back us up. If this is what truly happened, then we have plenty of supporting evidence in our favor. Like how the puncture wound explains our theory!

"Miss Yashin," I reply back with confidence backing my words, "There's no reason for us to believe that there was a conflict on the ground floor at all, that night! I would like to refer to the  **Autopsy Report** . Note that, in addition to having body-wide wounds, and a puncture wound from a stake of wood from the broken easel. The defense asserts that the victim was having a confrontation on the first floor, and he himself was pushed over the edge and landed on top of the easel on the ground floor below!"

*!*

The audience is clearly buying what we're selling, which is good. At this point, I'm certain we're on the right track. "After all, this all lines up, doesn't it?" I push further, "A 'THUD' from a falling body simultaneous with a 'SNAP' from the easel it landed in, followed by a 'SMASH' from a statue!"

"Why, in your opinion," Yashin probes, "Would someone have pushed a statue on top of the victim after the fact?"

I shake my head. "We can't know for sure at this point in time. However, it is pure fact that the body had a statue on top of it, and that statue was likely on the first floor since it is so out of place on the ground floor. I'll go one further: you explained how hard it would have been to hit a moving target with a statue so large. But if the victim had just fallen and was already wounded--or even dead--it wouldn't be hard at all to aim a statue to fall right on top of him!"

\---(Music End)---

"I have to stop you right there, Mr. Wright," Yashin retorts, "I have to give you credit on your creativity, but this theory simply isn't possible. You're neglecting to mention the  **Destroyed Painting** that we found elsewhere in the crime scene. Every other easel in the display area had a painting on it already, ergo the destroyed painting had to have belonged to the easel that was broken. Why wasn't the painting directly underneath the body?"

"We've already established that someone tampered with the crime scene after the murder," is my counter, "They could have easily pulled the picture out from underneath and placed it elsewhere specifically to throw us off. It was a clever move, because that painting is the only thing that can confirm for us that the victim did fall from above!"

"You've got that right, Mr. Wright," Yashin chuckles, "That the painting is the only piece of evidence that can prove your theory. That makes it all the more of a shame that you simply can't use this evidence to support your theory, because there's no proof that that victim could have fallen on top of that painting. And without that, there's absolutely nothing to suggest that the location is anywhere other than the ground floor, where we started!"

This is a tricky spot. We're so close to changing the premise of this case completely... I better take a moment to revisit every piece of evidence we have for any kind of connection between the painting and the victim...

The painting was smeared, yes? Perhaps if the body fell on it, there would have been some sort of residual paint or smearing on the body... but all I see from the  **Crime Scene Photographs** is the victim covered in blood--

Wait, is it really blood?

Could this be the evidence we need?

Yes, it can!

\---Music:  [ Phoenix Wright ~ Objection! 2002 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRMr8Jv_ZP4) \---

I shuffled the evidence I have in hand to straighten the photos out neatly. "I need to direct the court's attention to the  **Crime Scene Photographs** , specifically the body on the stretcher."

"What a gruesome image..." the Judge mourns, before asking, "But what exactly does this prove to us?" 

"Allow me to point it out for you, your Honor:" I offer, drawing my finger right to the wounded area in the abdomen. "As you can see, the body is covered in 'blood' from the puncture wound of sharp wood from the easel... but, I have to direct the court's attention back to the  **Destroyed Painting** , as well. It is a piece that has many rich reds used in it, and the painting is smeared completely. Detective Ritsu, I'd like to ask you, was there any paint residue left on the body, specifically in the bloodied area?"

He nods. "The boys back at the lab found there was a lot of red paint actually mixed into the wounded area, and it was a real head-scratcher. We knew that somehow the victim must have come into contact with the painting, but we couldn't figure out how."

This really has the court going. Even the Judge is in a state of heavy contemplation. I think we've really connected the dots here! 

"Nick, you're on a roll!" Maya cheers, "But now we have to take advantage of this opportunity! We know Akira didn't do it, so who else would have been on the first floor? Looks like we might finally have pinned a prime suspect!"

\---(Music End)---

"Before you even say what you're about to say," Yashin interjects, "Do note that Kuchibiru-san pulled an alarm on the completely opposite side of the balcony, even if it was technically still on the first floor. He would have been nowhere near the purported area that the victim would have fallen from, had he been pushed over the railing as you claim."

"That's not necessarily a terrible loss of ground," Sae reasons, "We weren't really suspecting the security guard as much as we were the curator..."

"If you ask me," Maya jumps in, "I think it's important that we can prove that the curator wasn't in his office!"

"There's no way around it," the Judge speaks, "Understanding the locations of everyone involved is an absolute necessity in understanding the truth of what happened..."

A familiar laugh echoes once more. "Aha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!"

\---Music:  [ Gyakuten Meets Orchestra - Villain Suite (Mask☆DeMasque Theme starting at 2:37) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MpdAHJpZHs0&feature=youtu.be&t=157) \---

Mask☆DeMasque flies to the very center of the courtroom, and all eyes are on him once again. "It has been my pleasure sharing this knowledge with the court, your Honor!" I must soon take my leave, but I trust that the ladies and gentlemen of this trial's proceedings will make use of the information I have delivered!

Yashin shakes her head. "A lot of the defense's interpretation of events ride on this testimony. The location of the curator, the noises that the witness claims to have heard, and the resulting times and events described. But, at the end of the day, this witness is a masked burglar. Before we even go any further with this line of thought, the prosecution would like to raise a question: exactly how trustworthy  _ is _ this witness?"

"You make an excellent point," the Judge analyzes firmly, "I've been hesitant to even allow this testimony to begin with. Our poor bailiff has been run ragged trying to capture this witness, and this entire situation feels more like a theater performance than a cross-examination."

"Indeed," Yashin agrees, "Yet we're expected to change our entire understand of the crime based on this witness? Only a fool would place so much faith in such a testimony. If I wasn't seeing him flying through the air in front of my very eyes I'd go so far as to question whether or not Mask☆DeMasque was even at the museum that night to begin with. All we have to go on is his word claiming he was."

"Au contraire, mademoiselle!" Mask☆DeMasque grandly speaks as he enters the conversation once more, "If you need something better than my word, you can have it! As I stated from the beginning, I have a grand finale in store. I have one last parting gift I would like to leave in the capable hands of your Honor!"

He takes a momentary respite from his T-pose to draw his arms in while tightly holding his cape, wrapping himself as if he were a sleeping bat. With a dramatic flourish, he swings both of his arms back out and into their T-position once more, in the process causing mighty flaps of his cape, and scattering... pieces of paper? There aren't too many of them, probably five or six at most. Enough that the bailiff is quick enough to catch each one of them individually before they hit the ground.

"With this, I return that which I had borrowed from the Sniffsonian," DeMasque explains, "These documents come directly from the desk of the museum's curator, Hebi Hibiki!"

*!*

*!*

*!*

He gradually lifts higher and higher into the air before leaving through the glass sunroof and flying out of sight.

"Salutations, ladies and gentlemen! We shall meet again when the moon is full! Aha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!"

\---(Music End)---

"My word...!" the Judge gasps, "Bailiff, please deliver those to detective Ritsu. If these are truly what the witness claims, then... well, I won't jump to any conclusions. But I insist that the police analyze these papers immediately!"

"Roger that, your Honor," Ritsu salutes as the papers are handed over to him, and he prepares them to be scrutinized by the police and forensics teams. "We'll take a close look for sure."

Hebi Hibiki stands from his seat and shouts, shuffling to try and leave the stands to run after the papers. "You dastardly pickpocket! Deplorable criminal! The nerve of him, taking those from me! Give those back immediately!" he cries as the bailiff blocks him from moving any closer to Ritsu, despite his struggling.

The Judge slams his gavel down. "Hibiki-san, I demand orderly conduct."

The anticipation in the room is suffocating, until Ritsu finally returns with preliminary results. "These look to be shipping records of some kind. Each item listed is one belonging to the museum. Nothing about them shows any signs of being altered: each paper has already been laminated for preservation, and the curator's fingerprints seem to prove the legitimacy of their source."

"Of course they are legitimate, they are mine!" Hibiki shouts angrily, "So give them back to me, at once!"

The Judge's gavel comes down again. "Hibiki-san, I WILL have order in my court," he commands with authority, before coughing and easing up. "That said, shipping records do not relate even slightly to what we are discussing. Detective Ritsu, when you are done with analyzing them, you may give them back to Hibiki-san."

*!*

"Nick!" Maya calls to me with a subdued, quiet shout, "This could be exactly what we need to connect this to the curator! We can't let this chance slip by!"

I hold my chin in thought and consider the situation as it stands presently. "It could very well. But, at this moment, we don't have anything in our evidence that would prove any link between the curator's dealings and the murder..."

"We have to do  _ something _ ," Sae insists, "This may be crucial to the truth, but it's useless if he gets them back--we'll never see them again if that happens!"

She's right. Something is exactly what I'll try and do, and hopefully I'll figure something out as I go along!

"Your Honor!" I plead, "Since we don't know exactly what those documents pertain to quite yet, erm... um, the defense requests that those documents stay in police custody for the time being...?"

Hibiki directs his anger at us, now. "You two have been nothing but trouble from the start! When this is said and done, rest assured that I will be pressing charges against all of you for-"

Three gavel strikes seems to quiet him down. "Hibiki-san, if you do not keep your calm, I will have you removed from this courtroom. I will not ask again."

The Judge frown turns to me, to which I scratch the back of my head and try to look as innocent as possible. "Mr. Wright, we have gone beyond pushing the boundaries of what any sensible court should allow. I'm leaning on having this entire testimony scratched from the record, and I cannot justify using evidence that has been stolen."

Yashin looks surprised by this information. As she eyes the documents, she seems very interested. "Your Honor, if I may. Evidence laws dictate that as long as evidence is overseen and approved by the police, it is legal to present, and it would also become legal evidence as well should it become relevant to the facts of the trial. The prosecution agrees with the defense that these documents should be kept in the possession of the police until this trial is resolved."

*!*

Sae, Maya, and I are all taken aback by this. Hibiki is ready to flip his lid, but he keeps his mouth shut. I can tell he'd be threatening to press charges against her as well if he could, but the Judge's threats have him just barely contained at the moment.

Regardless, thanks to her intervention, we should be safe to consider  **Shipping Records** as part of our evidence. We know that these records actually detail the movement of the items he has been selling off secretly, but we'll have to bide our time until we can prove that those have anything to do with this case...

"Miss Yashin," Sae calls to our rival, "I've met plenty of prosecutors in my career, and you're quite unlike any of them. On one hand, you've been unrelenting in trying to convict our client, but on the other you've taken almost all of this quite passively; casually, even. As one professional to another, I'm just curious: what are your goals, here?"

She lifts both of her open palms outwardly and shrugs with a smirk and a sigh. "Austin Translation was a foreign diplomat. To say he had a few friends in high places would be an understatement. A lot of people have vested interests in seeing his killer brought to justice. Whoever that ends up being, I'll do everything in my power to convict them. In this situation, I've been lead to believe your client is still the most likely suspect."

"Oh, come on, you can't still be saying that!" Maya rolls her eyes, "You still haven't come up with a convincing argument for Akira even being involved in the first place!"

Yashin tilts her head to the side and rests her cheek on her fist. "Well, I actually do have 100% conclusive evidence that I've been waiting for the right moment to present."

*!*

*!*

*!* 

\---Music:  [ Poison Queen (God Hand) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhjIcgg2mVc) \---

The gallery is heating up with conversation and concern, and I can't help but voice my opinions. "Yashin, why on Earth would you wait this long if you had something that important?!"

Maya pouts as she eyes Yashin and whispers to us, "Well... she did say, 'Let us start the game...' Maybe she's making a game of this..."

Yashin's voice sounds like she is feeling humbled. "There's something that I love and respect about the relationship between the various sides in all of these trials. Between the prosecution and the defense, of course there's conflict. But, by putting pressure on one another, in a lot of ways we're encouraging each other to present new theories and imagine new angles. The best way to reach the truth is to exhaust all of our options and strategies until there's no more room for argument or doubt."

"'Once you eliminate the impossible _ , whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth _ ," Detective Ritsu summarizes with a quote that I recognize quite well. Though I'm certain the source he is quoting must be Sherlock Holmes, given his affinity for detective literature.

"Yes sir, detective!" Yashin nods, "And to reach the truth, we all have a role to play. Cooperative in spirit but competitive at the core. Kind of a Ying-Yang type deal, right? I want to win, but I want to be thorough about it."

"So... wait, do you accuse Akira or not...?" Maya questions in a confusion.

Yashin holds up a bag with thin black lines inside of it. "Oh, yes, of course. We found a few of  **Akira Kurusu's Hair Strands** at the scene of the crime."

*!*

*!*

*!*

Wh-

....WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT???!!!!

_ To be continued... _

__ \---(Music End)---

__ \---Music:  [ Jingle ~ That's All For Today ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f10LFrjzM30) \---

_ Would you like to save your game?  _

__ __ _ Yes No _


	4. Chapter 6d: Wake Up, Get Up, Turnabout There

_ April 13th, 9:02 am _

_ Tokyo District Court, Courtroom No. 2 _

\---Music:  [ High Pressure (Persona 5) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QqOYerJSc1k) \---

The Judge tries to pull everyone back into the trial with quite a few gavel strikes. "Miss Yashin, what have you been thinking withholding such a crucial piece of evidence?!"

"I wanted to leave nothing uncertain by giving the defense ample opportunity to try and prove me wrong. And, I'll be honest, you almost had me by establishing that the murder could have happened on a different floor. I was even starting to think that this Mask☆DeMasque character may have had something to do with the murder. But, even if the location was slightly different... ultimately, a very key factor hasn't changed."

"I already see where you're going with this," Sae comments, with a very serious expression, "It's about how we know the crime scene was altered."

Yashin takes a bit of a formal bow. "You're spot on, Niijima-san. It's factual that the statue was further damaged and the painting was moved, so there's no arguing that someone visited the scene where the body landed to make those changes. Even if the murder happened on the first floor... the killer still visited the ground floor to tamper with the scene, and that's exactly when and where they left a clue."

"This isn't good..." I mumble, trying to use a stern expression to hide the fact that I'm in a cold sweat. "I thought she was being ridiculous for insisting Akira was the culprit when almost literally nothing else seemed to support that."

"This must have been her trump card all along," Maya infers with an accusatory tone.

I've been gripping the edge of my bench so tightly that it's hurting my fingers. The worst part is, I can't think of a way to counter this...

\---(Music End)---

\---Music:  [ Last Surprise ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zgc-GzoIEr4) \---

A new voice entirely shouts and catches us all off-guard. Who could this be?

An audience member is standing up. It's a slender and tall man wearing fairly ordinary clothes. The sound of his voice as well as his demeanor feel almost regal, and I get the vibes of an artsy-type of person. He looks familiar, if only because of the blue hair. Is this one of Akira's friends?

The Judge looks towards the young man. "Excuse me, but who might you be?"

"My name is Yusuke Kitagawa, your Honor," the man responds, and his manner of speech is very polite and formal. "The defendant, Kurusu-san, is an acquaintance of mine. We were both invited to the museum on April 11th, and I can attest that he was present with me in the atrium during general business hours."

Yashin isn't buying it.

"I would like to elaborate to the court that these hair strands were located near the broken easel and the body--an exhibit area which is kept off limits by stanchion poles and chains. No one should have entered the roped-off area, even if it was during the day."

"I'm loathe to admit, but the two of us indeed stepped into the off-limits area during the day. I'm the artist who painted the piece that was destroyed later that night."

*!*

Yashin eyes him cautiously. "And you say you were both in that area? Why?"

The man turns his gaze to the side, as if regretful. "Kurusu-san is an art enthusiast of sorts. He was in the process of critiquing my work, and we were both... roused by disagreeing opinions. In the heat of passion, we both went up to my painting to point out specific details more closely, and at some point I began shouting. Now that I think in hindsight, I recall we made such a spectacle that the entire atrium was looking at us. How dreadfully embarrassed I would have been in any other state of mind."

Yashin doesn't seem to have a response ready quite yet, as her eyes are closed and she's holding her chin while focusing intensely.

"It wasn't one of my finer moments," Yusuke continues, "But I can assure you, within seconds of our outburst, we apologized to museum security and vacated the off-limits area, and left shortly thereafter."

The Judge's meditative expression almost mirrors Yashin's. "So, what you are asserting, is that the defendant was in fact present by the easel earlier in the day during standard business hours, before the crime even happened."

"Actually," Yurui contributes, "I was there when this happened. The staff and I were almost worried a fight was going to break out with how loud they were yelling."

"I see," the Judge acknowledges. "And would either of your two be willing to testify to these points for the court?"

"That may not be entirely necessary," detective Ritsu adds his two cents, "It should be easy enough to determine if this is true or not, especially if the entire atrium's worth of people were watching."

\---(Music End)---

"That's very true," the Judge agrees, "But I believe we should hear the thoughts of the defense as well as the prosecution, not only on this matter, but whether or not it effects their arguments."

\---Music:  [ Restlessness ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU) \---

This has all happened so quickly that I've barely had a chance to think, much less speak. But now is as good a chance as ever to speak my mind. "The defense continues to strongly assert that the only pieces of evidence even possibly connected to Kurusu-san are completely circumstantial, and we still believe him to be unrelated to any crimes which took place on the night of the 11th."

Yashin doesn't seem too terribly phased by this. "Other than finding it extremely uncanny how surprise testimonies keep appearing every time the defendant is implicated... the prosecution has no new opinions. Circumstantial or not, his hair was still there, and we can't prove exactly when it got there. Kurusu-san is still the prime suspect and most likely individual to have committed the crimes."

And what _I_ find uncanny is how neither her nor the police have made any connection with Akira and the Phantom Thieves. We know for certain that detective Ritsu is aware of Akira's true identity. Is he purposefully helping us out by not mentioning anything? I'm not sure if we can count him as an ally on this one... he has a duty as an officer of the law. I wish I could figure out what he's thinking right now.

And don't even get me started on Yashin. I know a person like her would have done her research before a trial, so I can only assume she knows about his past. But, there have been plenty of moments during this trial that she could have easily revealed Akira's criminal history to paint him even more suspicious... that first comment she made about the uncanny testimonies was definitely directed at us, after all. Maybe she has reasons to not bring it up yet? Or, maybe she actually doesn't know that Akira is the leader of the Phantom Thieves? There's no way to tell right now. At the very least we should move forward expecting her that she knows more than she's letting on.

"Hey, Nick, that's enough day dreaming, don'tcha think?" Maya snaps her fingers. I guess I was zoned out while processing all of this.

Right. Back to it, then. "Yashin, I understand how even though Kuchibiru-san was at the scene of the crime, he has somewhat of an alibi as to where he was at the time of death. But, Hibiki-san was also present with him when the police arrived. Either one of them could have potentially altered the crime scene. In fact, those two would have had the most opportunity to actually do so. So why haven't you and the police been considering the curator as a suspect? Mask☆DeMasque being able to steal documents right from his office proves the curator  _ wasn't _ in his office at the time, which is where he was alleged to be."

"If we take our masked friend's words at face value," she establishes, ready to rebound a counterargument, "Then we know that the curator was headed downstairs to a lower point. That much I'll almost accept. However, what is it we've been talking about from the start when it comes to the layout of the stairs from floor to floor?"

Maya tilts her head curiously. "That it's a pain actually getting anywhere because they are so spread out...?"

"Exactly," Yashin nods. "If we consider the time frames once more in relation to what Monsieur Masque testified, then Hibiki-san left his office at 9:14 pm. The alarm was pulled at 9:17, and that couldn't have been more than a minute after Kuchibiru-san heard the moment of the murder. There's only about a two or three minute window of time between those two points. Even if we assume Hibiki-san was going to continue walking downward--which we can't say for certain, either, he could have been going elsewhere--there's no way that he could have even reached the first floor, much less murder someone there."

I bite my lip. "That's a pretty strong argument. It all goes back to the damn stairs and how spread out they are."

"I seriously hate the jerk who designed that museum," Maya growls with spite.

I may have been hearing things, but I could have sworn a number of hushed voices from the audience sitting around Kitagawa-san all grumbled,  _ "You have no idea..." _

__ \---(Music End)---

__ The Judge seems ready to reflect on all that has progressed so far. "It feels as if we haven't particularly gotten anywhere despite all of the reasonable arguments and theories. We still aren't clear on who was present and at which locations during the time frame of this murder."

"Detective," Yashin calls out, grabbing Ritsu's attention, "Did anything ever come of restoration attempts on the statue itself? I've had that point of interest on the back-burner until there was more news."

Sae also remember the topic. "I do recall detective Ritsu mentioning that when we were heading to the tech specialist yesterday. He said that forensics experts were trying to recreate the statue so we could figure out which one exactly fell on the victim, right?"

"Oh, thank you for reminding me," Ritsu nods with a smile, "I got a few text messages about that earlier. So far, we've been having a lot of difficulty with restoration attempts. The thing is really screwed up, but they mentioned making some small progress."

Yashin smiles and snaps her fingers. "If that's the case, now may be the perfect time to address the matter of which statue actually crushed the victim. That could potentially tell us a lot about where the entire event started and ended. Is there anything they can present to the court?"

"I think the forensics team has been waiting for their cue to do just that," Ritsu nods, "I can have them bring their findings on in now."

"Excellent," the Judge commends with a nod, "Please do so, detective. I'll allow a few moments for your men to get situated."

The doors to the court open, and an officer rolls a small table with wheels underneath into the room. I can see what looks like a few chunk of statue placed on the table, covered in plastic wrap. This must be what the forensics people have been able to reconstruct up to this point. 

"I'm a bit surprised," the Judge remarks, "I didn't expect the recovered areas to be so... small." But soon after making that statement, he backtracks. "Though, given how destroyed the statue looked in the crime scene photographs, being able to put together even this much is actually an impressive feat."

"We'll take what we can get!" Maya speaks with optimism.

"My primary concern, however," the Judge continues, "Is what analyzing these pieces can actually tell us. I only took one art history course in college, and that was... well, a very long time ago. Will we be able to determine what statue this was based on such small samples?"

That shouldn't be a problem, because we have just the evidence for that.

"Your Honor, the defense can definitely help with that," I offer, "When we were investigating the museum, we made a list of all of the statues we could account for, which we were able to cross-reference with the  **Atrium Exhibit Guide** . We were able to determine that three statues were missing."

"Good thinking," Yashin compliments with a surprisingly friendly tone, "It only makes sense that whichever statue was destroyed that night would naturally no longer be on display."

"Exactly," Maya nods, "Narrowing it down could potentially give us the answer, depending on how distinct the repaired portions are."

The Judge has another request of us. "Would you mind going into detail for the court so that we may know a little bit more about what we're trying to match these pieces with?"

Oh man, I didn't think we'd be quizzed on the statues themselves. I bite my lip with embarrassment. "Oh, uh... all we really know is what we see in the pictures in the exhibit guide."

"Hmm," the Judge accepts, "Well, the curator himself is still in the audience. He would know better than anyone, yes?"

Ritsu shakes his head. "Unfortunately, he's currently refusing to speak and sitting in the lobby. He's rather, er, upset, at the moment..."

"It's all well and fine," Yashin shrugs with a smile, "Didn't we have an artist in the audience, anyway? Maybe he can help."

Her gaze locks on to the blue haired man from before. His eyes widen and blink a bit in response to the sudden call out. "Oh. Am I the one you're speaking of?"

"Yeah!" Maya concurs, "Would you be able to brief us on the statues, Kitagawa-san?"

"Well, I can most certainly try," he answers from a middle ground between confidence and and embarrassment.

\---Music:  [ Reasoning (Persona 4) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF-AtVPfTjk) \---

"Sounds like we've got a game plan," I acknowledge amiably, "I've got them in alphabetical order, here... first up, is  _ David _ . Or, at least, a replica made in spirit of it."

I've at this point handed the guide over to the bailiff who is projecting the images on screen a screen, and the first he zooms in on is the picture accompanying  _ David _ . It's a well-toned man in a pose of repose, it seems. Even I recognize this statue. He has his left arm bent towards his chin as if he's thinking about something. Aside from that, nothing particularly stands out in terms of the physical sculpt.

"Ah,  _ David _ ! Of course. This is a very well-known statue in the art world. In premise, it is very basic. It's simply a statue of a nude man, the namesake. It's in the careful detailing and perfect anatomy that the true beauty shines. Judging by this picture... the crafting has quite a bit of technique. A trained eye can tell that there are slight differences from the original piece, such as the pose, the direction the head is facing, and the musculature; that makes sense it would have differences from the source, given that I can assume it was made in tribute rather than to plagiarize."

"The next up is  _ Jeanne d’Arc Vaillante _ ," I announce, trying to pronounce it as best as I can, and the display in turn shifts along with me to the next statue."

On the screen next is a statue of a young woman who is wearing slender, almost form-fitting, armor. Her right arm hangs normally from the side, though that hand is clenched into a fist. Her left arm sticks out proudly and dramatically at an upward angle, and she's holding a sword within her grip. She holds a pose which really seems to give a sense of victory.

"Hmm," Yusuke hums softly as he stares with eyes like a hawk, analyzing the next picture. "This is clearly a work inspired by the French saint who is known across the world. Right from the start I can point out several significant dissimilarities between this particular statue and other more traditional ones representing the same saintly icon. It's interesting the artist chose to omit any kind of flag or banner, which the woman is normally associated with. I can see they opted to have her standing on foot rather than riding a horse, which is another common element. Though I suppose a life sized horse for her to ride would have taken much more time and effort to craft. However, 'bland' is the last word I'd use for the final piece for this art. In forgoing superfluous details they were able to capture just how stunning and inspiring a figure that Joan of Arc was. The attention to the finer details are marvelous."

"Next on the list is  _ Perseo Trionfante _ ," I move right along, and the next displayed exhibit guide photo shows a statue of a man who is nude as well, and the pose seems nearly identical to the last statue we just looked at. This statue has the right arm idle at the figure's side. However, the right hand is holding a sword at the figure's waist. The left arm is extending outwards at a slightly rising angle, but instead of holding up a sword triumphantly, he is instead holding a severed head by the hair, and the hair looks to be made of snakes. 

Yusuke nods as he holds his chin, still staring strongly at the image. "I suppose that this sculpture would come off as confusing or even shocking without the proper context. To begin, the head belongs to Medusa the gorgon of Greek mythology--a snake monster, if you will. I'm sure many of you are familiar with Medusa and her deadly gaze which turned any who looked at her into stone. Perseus, also a mythological figure, used his ingenuity to come up with a strategy to face her. By viewing her reflection against his metal shield he could approach her safely without looking directly at her. Defeating her with his shield this way is one of the many feats that made Perseus a hero. In this piece, Perseus is holding up Medusa's head by the snakes of her hair. This very moment of Medusa's defeat is a common and even popular scene for sculptors everywhere, though I'm curious why this particular work lacks the hero's iconic shield."

\---(Music End)---

"That wraps up the list," I conclude.

"Fascinating," the Judge comments respectfully, "Your knowledge is much appreciated, Kitagawa-san! All three statues are so simple in the premise of a single person standing, yet remarkably different in their various details. I can only hope this information guides us in determining more about where the statue originated. That location could change our entire outlook on the murder. I will now allow the defense as well as the prosecution a chance to inspect and analyze these restored pieces of statue."

"Be thorough, and take your time, Mr. Wright," Sae encourages, "If you focus carefully, I know you'll find a way to learn more about the true killer."

I nod to my friends, and I approach the table in the center of the court, with Yashin doing the same on the opposite side. We're given gloves so as to not mess up the evidence as we investigate, and we get right to it. It's time to get up close and see what these pieces are.

There are a handful of statue chunks of various shapes and sizes, some more discernible than others. I'd say probably about four solid chunks that could possibly give us information. "Well, Mr. Wright, let's have at it," Yashin says as she claps her hands and rubs them back and forth enthusiastically, "I'll let you pick the one we start with."

"Much appreciated," I reply back to match her sportsmanship. The longer this trial goes on, the more it starts to feel like we're on the same team. Two sides of the argument working together, trying to find out what truly happened that night. Still, I can't let my guard down just yet. Gotta be wary of any kind of sneak attacks from the prosecution, after all.

\---Music:  [ Logic Trinity ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jo88ZZ2byl8) \---

First piece I pick is a narrow, somewhat lengthy piece that looks to be the outer surface of something. I try to view it from many different angles to try and get an intuitive sense of what it may be. It's completely smooth and ever so slightly curved... what could this be?

"I think I may have an idea," Yashin confides to me, "Try holding it up against your forearm and see if the length of the piece is comparable."

Sure enough, it almost matches the length of a forearm. "I think you've got that right. It's sad that it's completely smooth though. It's impossible to tell if it's a bare arm like David or Perseus, or wearing plate armor like Joan of Arc."

"Can't really tell if it's a left or right arm, either," Yashin comments further, "But the shape looks like it's tapering, so it must be part of the forearm getting close to the statue's wrist.

Is there anything else I'm missing here? I double check everything. There seems to be one more point of interest, in that there's a somewhat distinct mark on the edge of this chunk. There's a bit of a half-circle. I'd almost say it looks like a dent or an imprint of some sort. I can see the jagged lines where the forensics team must have glued the pieces back together, and even though lines go through it, the edges of the circle match, together still forming the circle shape that's almost perfectly round.

If there's an imprinted mark on an otherwise perfectly smooth surface, something would have had to have made it, right? "I think this part of the statue must have been struck with something," I announce, "And whatever it was left a perfect circle."

"What could leave a circular mark...?" Yashin poses. We're both at a loss. "Perhaps we should keep that in mind moving forward, and look at another piece." 

I choose the piece in the center, as it actually looks like a fairly defined piece. I slowly and carefully rotate it around to view it from every angle possible. It's a fist, I can tell that much. A clenched left hand, to be specific. It seems to have similar, perfectly round marks at various points, always in the center of cracked areas. "I see more of the round circle marks... I think that the same object must have caused them. Now that we know that there was some sort of blunt object involved, it makes more sense how the culprit would have been able to completely smash up the statue to be so unrecognizable."

"So now we know that some sort of weapon was involved," Yashin agrees, "And a blunt object could very well have been the cause of the injury the victim suffered to the head."

Hmm... We haven't even really considered how the various injuries happened to the victim. This statue really IS giving us a lot of new insight. "Now, what about the hand itself?" I change. The fist isn't fully clenched in to itself, but it isn't hollow either. Rather, there is a solid center inside of the curled thumb and fingers which looks different. On both the top and bottom, the holes are jagged as if broken. 

I hand it over, and Yashin observes carefully as well. "Interesting. I think we're both going to reach the same conclusion, here."

"Namely, that this statue had to have been one of the ones holding something in this hand," I specify.

"That counts out  _ David _ , then," she reasons. "Now, if we're talking about objects, I think I know just which piece to look at next, if that's the case."

She moves on to a small piece that is narrow and tube-like. "Let's take a look at this next," she suggests.

Peculiar indeed. It's very narrow, too narrow to be a human limb or anything of that nature. What else would be narrow...?"

Well, two of the statues are holding a sword... a sword hilt is pretty narrow! Well, specifically the part that's gripped. "This may be what the hand was holding! I bet if we try and match it to the hole at the base of the hand, it will fit!"

Like a surgeon, I try to carefully join the two pieces together. It's... not a match, though. The grip isn't wide enough to match the size of what's missing from the fist. "Damn... maybe not."

"No, I think you were right. I think this is just too low down on the grip, and the forensics team probably weren't able to find the upper part of the grip. If they had found it and it was a fit, they would have sent both of these pieces us glued together already, yeah? The rest of the grip must have been too destroyed to repair."

"That's a good point," I agree, "So, if that's the case, then we can pretty much confirm this hand was holding a sword."

"I think this last piece coming up next actually IS part of the sword. Let's find out," she continues.

There's one more piece, and it's very flat and straight. It clicks for me as instantly as it did for Yashin that this must be a part of the blade. It has markings near the edges and between the cracks like every other piece we've seen, as well, but evidently the blade wasn't smashed enough to prevent this small piece from being put back together. "That has to be it, this is most definitely a sword. So, if we know the statue was holding a sword in its left hand, it must have been..."

  * _David_
  * _Jeanne d’Arc Vaillante_
  * _Perseo Trionfante_



\---Music:  [ Phoenix Wright ~ Objection! 2002 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRMr8Jv_ZP4) \---

"I think we've figured it out, your Honor," I announce to the court, "The statue that fell on the victim had to be  _ Jeanne d’Arc Vaillante _ !"

"Hey, Nick!" Maya calls, "I think you guys need to keep looking a little deeper! If this statue was involved with the murder, check it for fingerprints and stuff! There has to be leftover clues, right?"

"Actually," Ritsu jumps in, "We did find a trace of a fingerprint on the very edge of that piece that was the sword's grip, but it was so smashed and ground down that it's indecipherable."

Yashin seems lost in thought for quite a few moments, before making a suggestion of her own. "Detective, what about blood? Did we check the statue for blood yet?"

"Well, yes and no," he tries to explain, "A lot of the statue pieces were smashed and ground up so drastically that they looked like dust. Sure enough, most of the dust we found had traces of the victim's blood in them. Somehow blood got on the statue, and if I had to make a hypothesis as to why, I'd say the murderer destroyed the bloodied areas as much as possible to hide any traces of involvement."

"What about the pieces we're looking at right now?" I question, "Were they checked for blood as well?"

"That's right," he nods again, "The only trace was on the piece you're holding right now. It's so dried it is hardly noticeable to the naked eye, but there was a tiny spot of blood on the sword blade. The victim's blood, in fact."

*!*

"That's strange..." Sae comments with a puzzled look, "How did blood end up getting on the statue...? Especially on the sword. In the picture, Joan of Arc is raising her sword arm to the sky, at almost double the height of a regular adult."

"I wouldn't be able to tell you why," Ritsu laments, "I guess it all goes back to the physical altercation the victim had. At some point during the fight, maybe blood just happened to splatter in that direction, somehow."

Maya seems particularly caught up thinking about this. "Hey, Nick, when adding this to the evidence, make a note that Jeanne's sword is very high up. My gut tells me that something isn't right about that."

I'm in agreement on that point. We'll have to look into that point more as we go forward. "I guess it is about time to put these observations to paper. I'll be sure and do that, Maya."

I finally add the  **Broken Statue Shards** to the evidence list. I need to make specific notes on this evidence.

  * We've got the statue identified as _Jeanne d’Arc Vaillante._
  * There are slight indents, perfectly circular, at all of the cracking points.
  * The statue was holding a sword in its left hand.
  * The sword was pointed high up to the sky, taller than normal people.
  * The sword blade had traces of the victim's blood.



\---(Music End)---

Yashin reaches her arms behind her back to stretch, and she looks relieved. "That was fun, being able to tag-team with you, Mr. Wright. I really got a sense of your attention to detail and could feel your experience firsthand."

Given that she has been very friendly from the start, I don't doubt this as a genuine compliment. It's actually a relief having an opponent who is not only polite but willing to work with us. "I should be thanking you as well, Yashin. A few of the observations you made I may not have caught."

"Don't worry about it," she smiles, "But from here on, we need to both get back in the ring. Now that we've discovered more details, it's our jobs to use them."

That's absolutely correct. We should really put these discoveries under the magnifying lens now to discern everything we can.

"Your Honor, if I may," detective Ritsu announces.

"What is it, detective?" the Judge asks in response.

"Niijima-san referred us to a local tech repair specialist a while back, because the victim had a broken phone on his person when we found the body. Under police supervision, they've been hard at work on trying to restore it. A while ago, one of my boys texted me that the repairs are finished, and they just finished escorting it to the courthouse now. They'll be here momentarily to present it to the court."

*!*

"This could be big," Maya speaks with cautious anticipation, "I feel like we've been trying to put together a puzzle with the most important pieces missing. Finding out what the victim was doing that night could change everything!"

"Indeed," Yashin agrees, seeming eager more than anything, "Let's bring them on in as soon as we can."

Hmm. Didn't expect the topic to change. I'll have to keep the statue shards in the back of my mind, because I know we'll come back to them later.

A bit of time passes, but eventually the courtroom doors swing open and a squad of people enters. There are several officers, the center of which is holding a phone inside of a plastic bag. Near the back of the pack are a girl with orange hair and a man with a goatee and a white suit complimented by a hat. I can only assume the girl with orange hair must be Alibaba. She's a lot younger than I expected.

"Here you are, sir," one of the officers states formally as he hands the evidence over to detective Ritsu.

\---Music: [ Trance Logic](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAlNCtwBX6E) \---

"It looks brand new!" the Judge speaks in awe, "I could never have told it was broken at all, much less crushed by a statue!"

"Actually, your Honor," Ritsu begins to correct, "It actually IS a brand new phone. Our repair person did her work on the SIM card, which contains a lot of personal data within a phone. Must have been tricky repair work, given how small the thing is. Anyway, they just took the card and put it into a new phone."

"Fascinating," the wide-eyed Judge comments, "So in essence, with this new phone you should be have all of the data that was on the broken phone?"

Ritsu nods his head. "That's right. Would you give us some time to do a search through the info on the phone, your Honor?"

"By all means," the Judge agrees, "We need you to be as thorough about it as possible."

"Of course, you can count on us," Ritsu agrees with a salute.

We all expect to wait for several minutes, but Ritsu is surprisingly quick at going through the phone. "There's barely any personal data on the phone at all. All I can see is a single contact, nicknamed 'Hibiki,' and there's a text conversation with that number."

*!*

"It's rather one-sided, as well... it's only a handful of texts," Ritsu clarifies.

"Would you read them to the court, detective?" the Judge instructs.

"Sure will:"

\---(Music End)---

Everything quiets as we wait for the detective to narrate the mysterious texts.

" _ 8:55 pm: Been looking for you all day _

_ 8:55 pm: You already know what we need to talk about _

_ 8:55 pm: Ill be waiting at the atrium ground floor exit _

_ 8:56 pm: Fifteen minutes should be enough _

_ 9:07 pm:  _ _ We can keep this civil _

_ 9:08 pm: Getting real impatient _

_ 9:10 pm: Have it your way _

_ 9:13 pm: Already omw up to your office now _

_ 9:14 pm: You're not gonna be happy once I get there" _

__ \---Music: [ Telling the Truth 2002](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6X4-v78-2U) \---

_ " _ That's the last message on the phone, you Honor," Ritsu concludes.

"Whoa..." Maya gasps, "So now we're positive he had business with the curator!"

"Unfortunately, that might leave us with more questions than answers," Sae replies, not trying to be cynical so much as realistic.

"That may be, but this confirms something very important," I assert to the court, "Namely, that the victim was moving from the ground floor to the third floor before he was killed!"

Yashin is yet again holding her chin and tilting her head curiously. "So it all starts to come together. If the victim was headed up to the office, then we know with absolute certainty that the struggle and murder had to have happened on the first floor as you've suggested." 

This is crucial new info to work with. I'll go ahead and add the  **Repaired Phone** to our evidence list, along with a copy of the texts themselves.

"So," the Judge reflects, "The next integral question would be: who else would have been there to have killed him?"

Sae, Maya, and I all nod. This is the right time and place to call out the person we've been suspicious about from the start.

"The defense would like to present a theory as to that, your Honor," I announce.

"Oh?" the Judge asks, "And who exactly do you suspect?"

"If we look at the texts and who they were sent to, the answer is obvious. It had to have been--"

Hebi Hibiki shouts to interrupt me.

\---(Music End)---

"Let me testify! I demand to be able to testify!" he yells, practically foaming at the mouth, "I want to set the records straight before these contemptible lawyers start spewing false accusations!!"

\---Music: [ Elegant ~ And Excellence](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fUHIi1sBUw) \---

The Judge strikes his gavel. "Hibiki-san, you have already been warned..."

Yashin coughs and jumps in before the Judge can finish. "The prosecution maintains the same opinion from before, in that we will accept new testimony if it means helping us to find the truth."

"Hmm!" the Judge responds, too surprised to continue being upset. "Are you certain about that, Miss Yashin?"

She nods. "I suppose you can get a second opinion from the defense to see what they think."

Maya huddles the three of us together. "Heck yeah! The witness stand is exactly where we want this creep!"

"Agreed," Sae nods, "This is our best chance yet."

We're all together on this, so I let the Judge know. "Your Honor, the defense agrees. We have no issues at all with the curator testifying. His involvement in the events of that night are paramount to our understanding"

The Judge thinks it over. "Alright. Hibiki-san, you may come before the witness stand."

He walks his way over as allowed, and he holds his hands behind his back in a very formal way. His posture is impeccable, and his expression and disposition are all serious to the point that it's almost uncomfortable.

"I know you've already been introduced, but I'll give a quick reminder to the court," Yashin offers, "Hebi Hibiki, curator of the Sniffsonian Museum of Tokyo. Correct?"

"Correct," he repeats.

Yashin straightens her bowtie a little. "So, Hibiki-san, what in specific about this crime are you here to testify about today?"

"I can explain why the victim was in the museum that night in the first place," he offers.

*!*

*!*

*!*

"What took you so long..." Maya questions, too softly for him to hear.

The court is heating up, and I can hear that the viewers are on the edges of their seats just based on the volume of their chatter. The Judge puts a lid on the noise with two gavel strikes, however. "Hibiki-san. I thank you for bringing yourself to the witness stand today. You may begin your testimony."

\---(Music End)---

\---Music: [ Bonfire (Persona Q)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKrCk1D9c4Y) \---

\-- Visitor After Hours --

"As a man of culture, Austin Translation is one such friend I had made in my travels abroad.

I was expecting to see him during the day, but was so busy running the museum that we had to postpone our get together.

As his visit was cause for celebration, I sent my staff home that night so the two of us might share talk of travels over tea.

The new security system would certainly keep the two of us safe as we would meet one another, without needing extra staff.

It certainly worked splendidly, considering it lead to the arrest of that scoundrel who didn't get a chance to steal anything."

\---(Music End)---

"Intriguing," the Judge comments, "May I ask why you didn't testify when requested earlier?"

"With due respect, your Honor, my activities outside of my work are my own private matter," he explains, brushing off his shoulder a few times, "I had hoped to leave it that way. But, if I must discuss my life for the sake of the trial, then, well... here I am."

"That makes sense. As much as it is unfortunate that your personal life was impacted by this, I am grateful that you recognized the importance of disclosing this information to us. I believe its now time for the defense to cross-examine this testimony.

\---Music: [ Bonfire (Persona Q)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKrCk1D9c4Y) \---

"There's a lot we could pick apart, here," I recognize, "The only question is where to start."

"Well, the location of their meeting is important," Sae points out, "We should ask about that."

"Sounds like a plan," I nod.

"Hibiki-san. About your intention to meet with the victim. We need to know more specifics about the meeting. I know that a previous witness, Mask☆DeMasque, said he saw you leaving your office, as well. When you left your office, was it specifically to go see the victim?"

Hibiki's eyes shift back and forth cautiously, as if he's on high alert. "Of course. I thought that much was obvious. He was waiting for me, after all," he answers. 

"And where exactly were the two of you to meet...?" I ask further.

His eyes remain shifty, and he seems to hesitate. "Well, I believe I kept him waiting for longer than I had realized. As he was making his way up, I left my office as well, and had assumed we would meet halfway. The two of us could both go down to the cafeteria on the ground floor."

"That entire story is a lie," Sae speaks to us sharply, "Based on everything you two told me, Hibiki not only barely knew the victim--if at all--and was visibly upset when you mentioned the victim while speaking with him."

"That's true," Maya agrees wholeheartedly, "It shouldn't be hard at all to shoot down this testimony. Do we have proof that the relationship between the two of them wasn't a simple friendship?"

"That we do!" I nod confidently, "In fact, we were just looking at our proof a moment ago. We basically got all we needed to know straight from the victim's mouth, after all!"

\---(Music End)---

"I'm sorry, Hibiki-san," I begin, "But the relationship you claim to have had with the victim just simply isn't true. We can prove exactly what kind of relationship you had with the victim based on the very text messages he sent you by reading them off of this  **Repaired Phone** !"

__ \---Music: [ Telling the Truth 2001](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TIZH3Ur0zcQ) \---

"I'm sorry, Mr. Wright," the Judge speaks to me as if to caution me, "But you'll have to be more specific. There are quite a few messages here, and the overall tone and subject of the conversation are both vague."

"Let's take a look at the latter half in particular:

_ 9:07 pm:  _ _ We can keep this civil _

_ 9:08 pm: Getting real impatient _

_ 9:10 pm: Have it your way _

_ 9:13 pm: Already omw up to your office now _

_ 9:14 pm: You're not gonna be happy once I get there _

"Now, is 'keeping things civil' something that a friend would tell another friend out of the blue?" I reason, "More than anything, it sounds like their interactions that night, or even their whole relationship, was tense!"

"That... is a remarkable point!" the Judge concedes, "The tone of these messages do sound almost confrontational."

"And, you only left your office once the victim stated he would actively be coming to you. That sounds to me like you were trying to avoid him."

Hibiki's eyes turn into more of a glare, and this time I'm positive I see him hissing his tongue sporadically. "I told you, I was very busy. I had barely had time to even check my text messages. I didn't realize I had worn his patience by keeping him so long."

"Take a look at the last text, as well:" I draw attention to, "In fact, the way this entire conversation is formatted, it almost sounds like he's threatening you."

*!*

Hibiki jerks a little in shock. Looks like we hit the nail on the head. "In fact, I'd go so far as to say that this wasn't a planned meeting at all. Why didn't you reply to him, even once?"

*!*

The audience's intensity is rising more by the second. "Did you even want to meet with him in the first place? Or did you leave your office entirely under pressure from the texts the victim sent you?"

"I think we're making real progress here, Nick!" Maya cheers me on.

Seeing as he won't respond to me, either, I keep going. "Hibiki-san, I think the nature of your 'meeting' with the victim was entirely different than you explained. The  _ real _ reason you went to meet with him was because:

  * You were happy to see an old friend
  * You were sad to keep him waiting so long
  * You were frightened that he was coming for you



This one is obvious. "You were frightened, knowing that the victim was coming your way! Given that there are multiple staircases between floors, I would even go so far as to say you were probably trying to leave the museum, hoping that you wouldn't end up meeting him at all!"

I know that he's going to be stumbling off guard after being caught in a lie like this, so I'll leverage our advantage to try and get more out of him. "So, do tell, Hibiki-san: what exactly happened to your 'friend' when the two of you eventually DID meet?"

\---(Music End)---

Yashin's shout let us all know she's about to jump in. "Mr. Wright, regardless of the nature of this meeting, one thing is very clear:  _ the witness never met with the victim that night _ ."

*!*

*!*

*!*

\---Music:  [ Poison Queen (God Hand) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nT3Vs7SvBfg) \---

I have a bad feeling about this, I can only dread whatever it is she's about to try and argue. "It all comes down to the times of the events of that night. So that I may remind the defense: the witness left his office at 9:14 pm. The alarm was pulled at 9:17 pm, in response to hearing the loud crashes that must have been the falling objects. Even if we assume that the security guard, Kuchibiru-san, was lightning quick and pulled the level as soon as he heard the noise, that only leaves about a three minute period, and that's being generous. The fact of the matter is, Hibiki-san could have never made it all the way to the first floor in that amount of time without running, and even then, it would have only given him mere seconds to actually commit a murder, which just isn't feasible."

"That's... a reasonable assessment," Sae frowns.

"Exactly, Niijima-san! Regardless of walking, jogging, or running, the witness would have only been able to move down one floor, at most. The first floor was just too far and away from the office, so Hibiki-san being the culprit is, speaking plainly, impossible."

*!*

I grit my teeth. I knew that she was going to launch a counter attack eventually, but I didn't expect it to be now of all times.

"So, if the curator was too far away from the scene of the murder, and the security guard was on the opposite side of the atrium... then the defendant is the only involved party whose location we can't account for."

\---(Music End)---

Maya shouts out in response.

"He's the only one out of all three of those who you can't even prove was in the museum that night at all!" she argues.

"Hmm," Yashin hums while contemplating that point. "To be honest, your Honor... the prosecution just hasn't physically investigated the areas where the crimes are alleged. I don't think we can confidently convict the defendant on this."

*!*

That was... extremely unexpected.

The Judge seems to be in agreement. "It sounds like the ground floor was the only area fully put under police scrutiny. Am I to understand you are requesting more time to investigate, Miss Yashin?"

She's not going to make the decision without heavy thought first, I can tell. "I believe that would be for the best, your Honor. We just need more time, and a chance to search the first floor balcony. And, given the masked criminal's involvement, we need to search the curator's office, as well..."

Hibiki cries out so loudly that it's alarming.

We all turn to him, and his head seems to be leaning down as he stares at the ground, his wig casting a shadow over the top half of his face to the point where we can't see his eyes. 

\---Music:  [ Regret ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGFZHBK2lTs) \--- 

"................... I had sincerely wished it would not have to come to this," he finally speaks gravely.

Even the Judge is startled by this outburst. "Hibiki-san...?"

"I wished so dearly that I could have stayed quiet. But, I need to do my due diligence, and admit the truth, loathe as I may be to do so...  **_I witnessed Yurui Kuchibiru kill Austin Translation_ ** ."

*!*

*!*

*!*

The Judge bangs his gavel repeatedly, but even he can't get the crowd fully under control. People are still whispering and gossiping, even after the height of the noise is quieted down.

"I don't buy this for a second!" Maya huffs, "Hibiki is way too suspicious, I don't trust his testimony!"

"Something about this feels... wrong," Sae tells me, "This doesn't doesn't add up. There has to be more to it, right...?"

Akira himself is not taking his eyes off Hibiki, and his staring is so intense that it gives me shivers. Even in the hot seat as the defendant I can tell he's not comfortable with this development. 

Though... Kuchibiru was the closest to the first floor. I guess it... makes sense? I know for fact that Hibiki is doing all kinds of shady things, but, maybe murder isn't one of them. After all, Yashin just proved he couldn't have possibly done it. Maybe we're letting our biases get in the way of fair judgement. But, still... did that meek security guard really commit a murder...?

Hibiki looks upon Kuchibiru with an expression that seems very empathetic, and he does sound like he's regretful in some way. “I’m so, so sorry my poor Yurui… you’ll do the right thing and admit your guilt, won’t you…?”

Hibiki's voice must have been just loud enough for everyone to hear it, as the noise quiets down to almost silence, and the room looks at the security guard. He's staring at the ground and visibly shaking in place as he bites his lip, but after a handful of incredibly tense moments, he opens his mouth. Only to stutter all over the place. "I-I'm... sorry... t-the one who k-k-killed Transl-lation-san... was..."

\---(Music End)---

He takes in a deep breath to steady himself and his speaking, and finally finishes his sentence. "... Me."

*!*

*!*

*!*

*!*

*!*

\---Music:  [ Blood of Villain ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvhEYbzToK4) \---

The ensuing gavel strikes from the Judge, thunderous as they are, ultimately fall on deaf ears. Deaf because of how loud of an uproar the crowd is in, that is. "Order! I will have order!" he shouts at the top of his lungs.

With everyone focused on Yurui or the Judge, Hibiki must know that he isn't the focus of attention anymore. He has his tongue out, hissing, but with a sinister grin. "Hehe... Hssehsse..." he softly chuckles, over and over again, rising in intensity to the point where he's in full laughter. "Hssssssshahahaha!" he cackles, throwing his head back which causes his wig to fall off. Under his powdery white wig is a full head of blonde, yellow hair which is accented by several lines from his scalp to his neck that look blood red. Red and yellow must be his true colors. How fitting, for a snake like him.

With Hibiki's hissing and laughing ringing in my ears, I desperately try to collect my thoughts. We're getting what we want, right? If the security guard is convicted, that means Akira is moments away from being acquitted completely, and we can all move on with our lives. But something is seriously wrong here. Yurui is shaking in his boots and looks like he wants to cry. 

"Niijima-san, Mr. Wright, Miss Maya..." Akira calls to us, and I see him with a look of steely determination on his face, "This isn't right. Please, keep going with this trial. I don't think Yurui is telling the truth. We can't let Hibiki walk free after all this. We have to prove that he's the true killer."

He's right. All of us agree, wholeheartedly. We can't let things end like this. But... what do we do from here? I think about the only thing we can do is try to appeal to Yurui to testify more...?

I'll do everything I can to try and change his fate. But, by the end of it all, the outcome of this trial will be up to Yurui Kuchibiru himself. 

_ To be continued... _

__

__ \---(Music End)---

\---Music:  [ Jingle ~ That's All For Today ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f10LFrjzM30) \---

_ Would you like to save your game?  _

_ Yes No _


	5. Chapter 6e: Wake Up, Get Up, Turnabout There

_ April 13th, 9:37 am _

_ Tokyo District Court, Courtroom No. 2 _

\---Music:  [ Blood of Villain ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvhEYbzToK4) \---

Maya tries to talk to me, which I can barely hear over the outrageous stir the audience is in. "I thought the curator was suspicious BEFORE he just had a fit of extremely-obviously-evil laughter," she says as she punches her open palm aggressively. "Plus, he only came out of left field with this accusation when Yashin mentioned searching his office. Nick, there's no way he's telling the truth about Kuchibiru-san!"

I, in turn, look at Yurui Kuchibiru, who I'm fairly certain is literally tearing up. "I mean, even if we don't know him that well... in my honest opinion, I don't think he could commit murder even if he wanted to."

"Exactly!" Maya insists, "I won't be able to sleep at night if we let him take the fall for this crime... there's no way it was him. There has to be some way to turn this back on Hibiki."

Sae hops right into the conversation herself. "I know how you feel, Maya. But I've been thinking hard on this. We know that Hibiki is obviously the culprit... but we have nothing to prove it."

Maya opens her mouth to protest, but Sae holds her hands out to gesture Maya to calm down. "Listen, I know this sounds cold. But shouldn't we stop and consider the situation here? If we try and contest the guard's confession, then suspicion will fall back on Akira-kun. Or, possibly onto Mask☆DeMasque, who is just as much a wildcard in this scenario. Having either of them convicted would be much worse for a lot of different reasons."

"... You have a point," I admit, "You're just trying to weigh our options objectively, I can see that. But you don't honestly believe Hibiki is innocent, do you?"

"Hell no!" Sae snaps back, "Make no mistake, my vote goes towards going down fighting. I just... wanted to be realistic about what we're truly risking here if we make that call."

"Then let's fight!" Maya voices strongly, "Question every statement, present every piece of evidence... I just know that everything will work out if we stick to our guns!"

This is a tough call from a logical standpoint, but from an emotional one? I'm just as charged as they are. "I think all three of us agree."

"All five of us," Akira adds from the sidelines, including his cat Morgana I can tell, "We both want you to hit that bastard with everything you've got. We aren't trampling over another innocent person just so I can walk free."

__ "Then it's settled," I nod, "First thing we need to do is point out how this confession doesn't make sense with what we know."

\---(Music End)---

\---Music:  [ Telling the Truth 2007 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8vJZIwZipE) \---

My blood is pumping like crazy after yelling loudly enough to get the attention of what was otherwise an out-of-control room. With my shout breaking the noise, people actually start paying attention to the Judge's gavel strikes, and the combined effort has everyone settled down. 

With the air open enough to be heard now, I'll get right to it. "Kuchibiru-san! Whether or not you are confessing to the crime doesn't change the facts!" I forcefully assert, "And your claim contradicts everything we've learned about this crime! The fact that your fingerprints were on the alarm on the other side of the atrium is something that the prosecution even went out of their way to use as proof that you couldn't have done this!"

Kuchibiru doesn't respond, he just continues shivering and staring straight down into the ground, unable to even make eye contact. Seeing as he won't answer, I keep appealing to him. "You can't be serious! Please, think about what you're doing! I don't know your reasons for making this confession, but... do you really want to be imprisoned and labeled a murderer for the rest of your life...? Did you  _ truly _ kill Austin Translation?!"

He bites his lip so hard I'm worried it may start to bleed. I know he's telling a lie. I don't know why, but this is a bluff, and I need to call it like one. I slam the surface in front of me with both hands. "Kuchibiru-san. Please. If you are going to do this... at least testify to the details! If you really did commit this crime, then the court needs you to explain exactly how you did it!"

Hibiki, still planted at the witness stand, doesn't take this sitting down.

\---(Music End)---

\---Music:  [ Tension ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrdMXoqp8Q4) \---

__ His voice has a hollowness to it; a soft, whisper-like reservation that sounds similar to the voices snake characters have in cartoons. "You heartlesss wretchesss! Think of the sssuffering you are inflicting on poor Missster Yurui! Can you even imagine the  _ pain  _ and the  _ guilt  _ he mussst feel? The  _ courage _ it mussst have taken him to admit sssuch a wrongdoing?"

"Don't listen to him, he's full of shit," Akira himself speaks bluntly, turning to look at the security guard. "Kuchibiru-san, what dirt does your boss have on you? Blackmail? Is he threatening you?"

The guy still doesn't speak so much as a word. Even the Judge isn't sure what to make of this. "There are still a lot of unanswered questions, but if Kuchibiru-san is personally admitting to the crimes, then..."

Sae punches the table and raises her voice to the point where it's almost scary.

  


"Your Honor, please, stop for a moment and see how wrong this is!" she pleads, "We don't know enough to take this confession at face value!"

Hebi, quite upset by the way this discussion is moving, speaks again. "What kind of farccce of a court isss thisss?!" he criticizes, "Thisss man is confesssing his guilt in front of all of usss! You're all cccharlatans parading yourssselvesss asss upholdersss of the law!! Missster Yurui, I want to think about everything very carefully... before making your decccisssion..."

"Leave him alone, he can speak for himself!" Maya yells back in frustration.

The Judge's gavel comes down with a crack.

\---(Music End)--- 

The Judge closes his eyes and holds a firm, almost frowning expression. "It is indeed up to the court's discretion whether or not to accept a confession of guilt as valid evidence. Kuchibiru-san, you have every right for a due process. Knowing the consequences of being convicted for this crime, and your rights as a citizen... do you honestly confess your guilt to this murder?"

Every last one of us watches the security guard, each of us holding our breath in anticipation almost to the point of getting dizzy. The guy's lips start to tremble as if they are trying to mumble something, and, finally, he opens them to speak...

Before he can get a word out, a very gruff voice yells out from the audience. 

What takes me by surprise is that the voice is, surprisingly, speaking fluent English. Specifically with an Italian-American accent that makes me think of old Mafia movies. "Jack. Over here," the male voice speaks as if vying for attention.

Jack? Who is Jack? I wonder what THIS outburst is going to be about..?

\---Music:  [ Kitaki Family ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQTA0DNbBI0) \---

I look to see an older gentleman who is dressed sharply and wearing a hat, just like a mobster. His aged, serious face is further accented by the shadow from his hat completely obscuring his upper face, so I can't even see his eyes. It's hard to make out his actual appearance, but in spirit alone he gives off a vibe that he could star in a Godfather movie. 

Kuchibiru is staring at the man as well. "You talkin' to me?" he asks back to the figure. I didn't think Kuchibiru would be bilingual, but he sounds more comfortable with English than he does with Japanese.

"Yeah, I'm talkin' to you!" the older man speaks from the audience. He removes his hat, revealing a short and well-kept hair cut, and yet... his eyes are still obscured by shadows. Actually... I may be imagining things, but I think I saw them move up and down a tad as he spoke. There's no way that those big black blotches are comically large eyebrows or something, right...?

Upon seeing the man's face clearly without his hat, Yurui's face lights up in both shock and amazement. "B-B-Big Wins?! Is that y-you!? Why are you here?!"

It's hard to tell who is understanding what they're saying and who isn't, but at least Maya, the Judge, and I all follow their conversation. "You're why I'm here, kid. I came a long way so I could bring you back home. Jack. My cugine. Why did you run away?"

Yurui--or, Jack? I guess?-- looks back down to the ground nervously, shaking his head. "I-I-I'm sorry, boss... I just... I'm scared. And, I didn't want to cause any more trouble for you..."

The mob-looking man ("Big Wins?" Is that his nickname...?) shakes his head quite adamantly. "The only trouble you're causing is for my boy who wants to know why his big brother amscrayed all the way across the ocean."

Kuchibiru looks extremely remorseful. "I, I didn't mean to worry Wocky... but, boss... y-you know what happened. I-I'm a dead man if they find me!"

"You're no dead man. You're a family man," is the decisive response, "And the Kitaki family is here for you."

"B-Boss... I don't know what to--"

Hibiki jumps into the conversation with a spiteful tone of voice. "I don't know what thisss isss about, but... remember, 'Yurui,'" he states, using his fingers to make air quotations around the name, "Your sssecret ssseemsss dangerousssly clossse to being revealed... you wouldn't want that, would you, 'Yurui...?'"

"You. Zip it. Capisce?" Big Wins speaks, coming down with such an authority that Hibiki shuts his mouth quickly. "Jack. There's a second reason I'm here. 'They' have started to spread out their operations into this country, too. My people are still trying to figure out why. But it's only a matter of time until they find you. You will be a lot safer if you come back to us."

Jack squints his eyes closed and tries to build up confidence to speak. "I'm... sorry to c-cause you so much trouble, boss...!!"

"Jack," Big Wins speaks firmly, "You aren't causing anybody no trouble. What you did for us--for Wocky--is something I will never forget. My family owes you a debt that I intend to pay with interest. On my very honor... I will make sure that you stay safe. Capisce?"

\---(Music End)---

I can see a tear drip down Jack's cheek for the briefest of moments. The mild mannered security guard raises his head and takes a deep breath. His appearance doesn't change much, though he does remove his glasses. It's his presence that changes drastically. I can definitely feel him giving off rays of newfound confidence. "Thanks, boss," he nods.

The Judge remains skeptical. "Could either of you gentlemen explain precisely what that was all about?"

Jack nods his head. "Your Honor. I'm sorry for misleading you, I truly am. But, my real name is Jack Canary. I'm American, and used to live in California."

*!*

\---Music:  [ Telling the Truth 2002 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6X4-v78-2U) \---

I can't say I saw this coming. Like, not even slightly. He must be super well-adjusted to living in this country, because I would have never guessed he wasn't from here. 

"Mr. Canary," the Judge asks with a curious tone, "Why on Earth have you been pretending to be someone else?"

"Back home in Los Angeles, I was caught in the crossfire of rival gangs, and... well, I had to leave the city. The country, even. I didn't realize it, but I had made enemies with a huge crime family. Witness protection had the resources to help me relocate and start a new life with a new name."

"I see," the Judge replies, with a tone that has shifted from curiosity to empathy, "I can't even imagine how difficult it must have been starting anew so far away from home. And you must have been in extreme danger to need to leave the country entirely."

"I... still am," speaks with a hint of hesitation. The confidence that he's exuding seems to waiver in and out as if he's momentarily struggling to stay standing strong.

The Judge tilts his head while considering his next question. "Mr. Canary, what reason do you have for revealing your identity now, in the middle of this trial? Doesn't that put you in danger all over again?"

"I was already in danger. Hebi Hibiki found out my true identity and has been keeping it a secret in order to blackmail me," Jack explains, still a bit shaky.

He takes a deep breath and, finally, his confidence cements itself. "But now, I have... family. Family who I can trust. I'm not afraid of you anymore, Hibiki-san."

"Thisss isss ridiculousss!" Hibiki argues, and the more upset he gets, the more it almost looks like the red streaks in his hair stand on end. " _ I  _ ssshould be the one afraid of  _ you _ ! I'm lucky to be alive, when you could have killed me too that night...!! Your Honor, thisss man already confesssed to being a murderer!"

After a long bout of relative silence, Yashin's shout as she enters the conversation feels very dramatic.

\---(Music End)---

"This has been quite the soap opera," Yashin announces, "But I believe I've heard enough that I can start to speak my mind."

"I am quite interested in the prosecution's take on the events happening here," the Judge returns.

\---Music:  [ Restlessness ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU) \---

"Even if Mr. Canary confesses, I won't accept it under the current circumstances," she explains, "I'm here today because we need to figure out who killed the victim and why. I hope my straightforwardness won't be misinterpreted as rudeness, but quite frankly, I don't care who it ends up being. Finding the real culprit is our main objective here, today, and there are still too many unanswered questions. If anything, the prosecution's stance is to request further testimony from Mr. Canary now that he's not keeping secrets anymore."

Now that she's pointing her tenacity away from Akira and in a different direction, I can see the strength of her conviction even more clearly. A prosecutor who focuses entirely on the truth, regardless of whether or not it helps their "case" is the kind of rival that I respect the most. 

Jack nods his head. "I can do that. I can tell you everything I saw that night," he asserts matter-of-factly. 

"That would be much appreciated, Mr. Canary," the Judge approves respectfully.

He walks to the stand as instructed, and Yashin takes over with the court formalities. "Mr. Canary. Just so we are clear on  _ all  _ of the details, I'm asking you for your name and occupation."

"Jack Canary. I used to own a small cafe in Los Angeles before I moved. For the last sixth months, however, I've been working as a security guard for the Sniffsonian museum."

"Very well," the Judge nods, "But I would like to make one thing clear before you begin. I can look past the fact that you were under oath using an assumed name, given the circumstances. However, for the sake of testifying factually for this trial, I cannot allow any more false information. Please testify to the events as you truly witnessed them, with no more secrets."

"I understand, your Honor," Jack agrees, taking a deep breath before beginning.

\---(Music End)---

\---Music:  [ Looming Danger (Persona Q) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdceCROhB_Q) \---

\-- Covering Up the Crime --

"Everything I said before was true. I heard the same sounds as Mask☆DeMasque described, and pulled the nearest alarm.

I ran downstairs, and on the ground floor, I found the victim's body on top of a broken easel but under a cracked statue.

Hebi Hibiki showed up a few minutes later, running full speed, covered in sweat, and panicking. He was really alarmed to see me, and demanded to know why I hadn't gone home yet.

After calming down, he ordered me start destroying parts of the statue and moving things, and to not ask questions.

Obviously, if I were to tell anyone, he would reveal my identity, so I had to do what he said..."

\---(Music End)---

*!*

*!*

*!*

\---Music:  [ High Pressure ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QqOYerJSc1k) \---

The court is in complete shock. This is such an extreme amount of crucial information to take in! Hibiki seems like he's ready to flip his lid, but keeps himself calm in the meantime.

"My word..." the Judge speaks in awe, "You were forced into altering the crime scene?"

"I'm... I'm sorry. I had no choice," Jack laments.

The Judge seems disappointed. "That in and of itself is a serious matter that we may need to address later."

"Let's not get too ahead of ourselves," Yashin cautions, "We need to assess the validity of the testimony, first."

"Indeed," the Judge agrees, "I will now give the defense the opportunity to cross-examine the witness."

\---(Music End)---

\---Music:  [ Looming Danger (Persona Q) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdceCROhB_Q) \---

"What are our thoughts, guys?" I poll.

Sae is the first to propose a direction to pursue. "This is the most raw detail we've gotten about the murder itself, or at least a point very soon after it happened. If this is true, then Mr. Canary is the first person to find the scene of the crime as it was."

"Oh! And I can add to that suggestion!" Maya contributes, "We can ask him about specifically what Hibiki had him change at the scene of the crime! He's the only one that would know the 'before' and 'after' of the crime scene."

"Both very good calls," I agree, "And I'm curious as to how the statue was so badly destroyed, myself... if Mr. Canary was pressured into destroying it, he can tell us exactly how. So let's get to business, then."

  


"Mr. Canary," I begin after collecting my thoughts, "You would have been the only person to have seen what the scene looked like, if you got there before Hibiki did. Plus, if you tampered with the scene, then you must know exactly what was changed. Can you please be extremely specific in explaining to us what Hibiki had you do?"

Jack takes a deep breath, and I can already expect this to be a doozy of an explanation. "He wanted me to make the crime scene more confusing without leaving traces, so he gave me a pair of the special gloves the museum staff uses when they are handling art, which wouldn't leave fingerprints. He had me roll the statue slightly so we could get underneath it to the body. He had me scatter around the pieces of wood everywhere, and move the broken painting somewhere else. We rolled the statue back on to him, and then he had me smash up a bunch of the statue until most of it was unrecognizable."

I immediately think back to the strange markings on the statue shards that we, and realize we need to address the question up front this time.

  


"Mr. Canary, how did you destroy the statue? No one can grind solid stone to dust with their bare hands. What did you use?"

"When I found the body," Mr. Canary specifies, "There was a hammer on the ground nearby. I was told to pick up that hammer and use it..."

"A hammer?" I repeat, "Like, the tool used to strike nails in?"

"Yes. It was a normal sized hammer that anyone could have in a toolbox. One of the few things Hibiki did actually mention while he was mumbling and pacing was that the victim had attacked him with that hammer."

*!*

Sae recognizing the importance of this for what it is. "Miss Yashin, was a hammer found at the crime scene at all when you investigated?"

"No, there wasn't..." she speaks, holding her chin as she thinks, "But that makes sense. A hammer WOULD leave almost a perfectly round indentation at the points where it would hit."

Maya raises the next question. "Mr. Canary, what happened to the hammer, then?"

"I still have it, actually," he elaborates, "I was told to get rid of it, but I ended up not doing that because I already didn't feel right about any of this..."

"Is it with you now?" Sae presses further.

"Yes, actually. It's in my car trunk in the parking lot."

"This could be absolutely crucial!" Maya reasons, "We need that hammer presented to the court!"

"I completely agree," the Judge nods, "Detective Ristu, will you escort the witness to his car to retrieve the evidence?"

"No problem, your Honor," Ritsu agrees, and they're off in no time. 

It only takes a few minutes before they are back, with an ordinary hammer inside of a plastic evidence bag. "Detective," Yashin calls to him, "Could you run fingerprint tests on that hammer? Figuring out who held that hammer and why will be important."

"I'll definitely do that," Ritsu salutes, "Just give me that boys some time to run a test and we'll come back with results as soon as we can."

With Ritsu leading, some of the police officers exit the courtroom to go scan for fingerprints. In the meantime, I'll add the  **Hammer** to the evidence list, because I feel like it will certainly come up again. 

"Now," I continue on, "Mr. Canary, is there anything else you can remember as far as further details go?"

"Well," Mr. Canary prepares to add, "Before we rolled the statue back onto the body, Hibiki was very specific about removing a chunk of stone from the victim and completely grinding the bloodied parts to dust."

*!*

It seems like everyone wants to start asking questions, the prosecution included. But, while we still have the floor, we need to pry at this new information as best we can. "Mr. Canary, would you please add the last thing you said to your testimony?"

"Oh, uh, sure," he complies.

"Hibiki was very specific about removing a chunk of stone from the victim and completely grinding the bloodied parts to dust."

"Nick," Maya tugs at my suit sleeve, "This could be big! This directly contradictions what we thought about the murder! You should present some evidence to compare!"

"My thoughts exactly, Maya," I agree, preparing to present a key item.

\---(Music End)---

"Mr. Canary, I need to review the  **Autopsy Report** with you," I state, holding the very documents in my hand. "Despite everything else, we've yet to truly figure out any details about the murder itself, specifically the wounds that were inflicted on the victim. We know that the majority of the body-wide trauma had to come from falling off of the balcony and subsequently being crushed by the statue. But, another element was the torso wound, where a splinter of wood was found. Are you telling us that the wound wasn't inflicted when falling onto the wooden easel?"

Mr. Canary shakes his head. "When I was rolling the statue off and looking at the body, I noticed that he had already been stabbed by the tip of a stone sword that must have belonged to one of our statues. It was one of the pieces that the curator had me specifically destroy as thoroughly as possible, and he decided to have me replace it by putting a wood shard in the wound."

\---Music:  [ Suspicion (Persona 5) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8) \---

"I was actually talking to the one of the police coroners the day after the incident," Yashin adds, "And they were mentioning that the shape of the puncture didn't quite match the wood that supposedly inflicted it. They ended up agreeing that the impact of a long fall could have moved the wood around and changed the wound shape and depth."

I gulp and feel as if my brain is overheating just trying to figure out how all of these vague details could possibly piece together. "So the statue itself is what caused the stab wound... that complicates things a lot. And the real question is... how in the world could that be possible if the statue was pointing the sword straight up?"

"I... don't know," Jack speaks, trying to recall as best he can, "But I do know that at least part of the sword was already separated from the rest of the statue, that's the only way that the sword piece could have been underneath the body."

"I see," Maya comments, "So the statue, or at least the sword, was already broken before it was pushed off the balcony."

"How could that be? Statues aren't exactly easy to break," Sae points out, rightfully so.

I may have an idea, but I'll run it by the team first. "Actually... maybe the answer is right in front of us. We already know what destroyed the statue after the murder, so what's to say the same tool didn't damage the statue before?"

In fact I bet I can present some evidence, here! 

"Your Honor, I believe that we may have figured out something important. There's no way anyone could break a solid statue with their bare hands. The only feasible way the statue could have been damaged would be with some other instrument. And, we already know that there was a tool being used that night. The defense asserts that, either intentionally or accidentally, the  **Hammer** was used to break off part of the statue's sword."

"That would explain a lot," Maya agrees, "And now that you've got me thinking. Given that the nature of the threatening text messages... it's possible that the hammer may have belonged to the victim, and perhaps he was planning on using it threateningly."

"This goes in line with one of our assumptions as well," Sae concurs, "That there was likely a physical altercation that night... just on the balconies, rather than the ground floor. If for some reason that hammer were being swung around as a weapon, a statue could easily have been damaged in the process."

Maya still recognizes another issue, however. "That still wouldn't explain how the guy ended up getting stabbed by part of the sword. Maybe it was an accident?"

"Well, it wouldn't be the first instance I've seen of someone getting impaled by a statue..." I mention, "But, again, the statue we're dealing with had a sword pointed high up in the air. I don't think it's possible that someone could have accidentally gotten stabbed."

"Could the stab have been intentional?" Sae proposes. "If we assume for some reason or another the sword was broken off--let's say, someone was swinging a hammer around haphazardly, for example--then the sword may have been on the ground for someone to pick up and use."

Yashin has something to say, it seems.

"I overheard the speculation on the defense's side over what items were used to damage what targets. I have to refer back to the  **Autopsy Report** , however. There's something that has been bothering me since the start, and that's specifically how the victim at some point had to have taken a severe blow to the head."

*!*

"Oh... we totally forgot about that, huh..." Maya reflects, dispirited.

"And yet, we still haven't conclusively determined what caused the head trauma," Yashin continues on. "It sure looks to me like the only thing readily on hand to strike the blow would have been the  **Hammer** that the witness told us of."

"That makes a lot of sense, as well," the Judge comments, "When I think of how hard I strike with my gavel, and imagine a hammer in its place... why, a hammer could easily cause a skull fracture!"

Remind me to stay on the Judge's good side...

Yashin has a look on her face that tells me that she has something important figured out. Or, at least, she must think she does... "The hammer is clearly a weapon which can kill, even if we don't know which of the two men brought the hammer with them. On one hand, a hammer would indeed be a fairly innocuous improvised weapon to bring around if the victim really did bring it. But, a hammer is also a tool that any type of business establishment may have available for utility or repair purposes. Would a security guard not also know exactly where to locate any toolboxes or such within the museum?"

That's a fair assessment, but I have a counter for that line of thinking. "But, the fact that a security guard like Mr. Canary is already equipped to handle security concerns is also a factor. He would have had a billy club, a taser, pepper spray... there's any number of completely realistic items he would have had on hand to subdue a trespasser by completely non-lethal means. He'd be doing his very job, and there would be nothing to hide or cover up, nor would anyone have died!"

"Unless, of course," she flips, "That trespasser is a threat to the museum curator, and needed to be silenced."

"Wait..." Maya blinks, "Is there a word for what a group of sharks is called together? She didn't just jump the shark, she jumped, like, multiple sharks to reach that conclusion."

I'm not entirely sure that's the exact meaning of that phrase, but I get where she's coming from. "I have to agree, that's just making more huge assumptions, Miss Yashin."

"Not really," she shakes her head, "I mean, wouldn't that also make perfect sense given the context of the witness being blackmailed by the curator? With the life or death information that Mr. Canary was being blackmailed by, it was important enough that he was willing to destroy evidence and tamper with a crime scene. It's completely plausible that murder could have been wrapped into all of the things that he did, as well."

*!*

Now that's a shock... the blackmail so blatantly points to Hibiki as the suspicious one. I didn't think it could be turned around in any other way.

"The biggest wildcard in this entire situation is the curator, Hibiki-san. The fact of the matter is, however, that he literally could not have committed the crime. It's completely impossible, something that we established quite some time ago. The only thing we can do here is try our best to figure out who else would have been around and able to commit the murder. At this point, Mr. Canary is the only one left who could have possibly done it."

Damn it... her reasoning is pretty solid. And the way she spoke with such certainty, it sounded like every word was undeniable truth.

\---(Music End)---

"Excuse me, sorry to interrupt, everyone," detective Ritsu announces as he enters the courtroom, "But we finished our tests for fingerprints."

Oh man, here we go... this could make or break the case...

"We found two set of fingerprints on the  **Hammer** ... those belonging to the victim, Austin Translation, as well as prints belonging to the witness, Yurui Kuchi- er, sorry, Jack Canary."

*!*

*!*

*!*

\---Music:  [ High Pressure ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QqOYerJSc1k) \--- 

"You're kidding..." Sae mumbles.

"That's because Hibiki had me use the hammer to destroy the statue!" Jack tries to explain frantically, "He didn't even show me he had the special gloves until after I had already picked up the hammer and started smashing!"

\---Music:  [ Poison Queen (God Hand) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nT3Vs7SvBfg) \---

"It all comes together," Yashin speaks with a snap of her fingers. "Austin Translation stayed in the museum after closing that night in an attempt to reach the museum curator, Hebi Hibiki. While climbing the stairs to reach Hibiki-san, he must have ran into the security guard, Jack Canary. Whether or not they talked to any extent or immediately came to blows, we can only assume that Mr. Canary somehow determined that the victim posed a deeper threat than just a regular burglar. My guess is that seeing the hammer the victim was carrying was probably the tip off that the victim wasn't on good terms with the curator. In whatever altercation ensued, the hammer managed to smash a nearby statue, specifically part of a sword. We know from the puncture wound on the victim that, either in self defense or otherwise, Mr. Canary had to have picked up the stone blade and stabbed the victim with it. The head injury tells us that the victim was then struck as well. The most likely explanation is that he dropped his hammer when stabbed, which the witness picked up and then used."

Ack...!! This is almost exactly the way we were thinking the events played out! I can't believe this... did the security guard really commit the murder, after all...?

"The remaining explanation to how the victim ended up is this:" Yashin continues on, "After being stabbed and then struck in the head, if the victim wasn't dead already, he would have certainly been out for the count. He may have stumbled backwards and fallen, or he may have been pushed or tackled while in a daze... specifically how he fell isn't important, but he did fall from the first floor balcony."

"But what of the state of the statue?" the Judge questions, "That perplexes me as well."

"And that's a very astute point of interest that we do need to explain," Yashin nods, "And I think I've got that figured out as well. The statue, being partially broken in the fight, would have potentially been evidence as to where the fight took place and how the murder was committed. Simply speaking, the statue had to go. It was a liability. And, as all of the statues were placed on top of wheeled platforms for the sake of moving... pushing it to the railing and leveraging it until it tipped over and fell would have been more simple than you'd think. Then, it was just the cleanup. The witness got to the crime scene before anyone else could, destroyed anything that could have left fingerprints, scattered items around to make the scene more confusing, and then acted like he had found the body like that once the curator arrived."

*!*

*!*

*!*

"I can't believe it..." Sae speaks with eyes wider than I've ever seen her with, "Did she really get it all figured out completely like that...?"

"Remarkable!" the Judge compliments, "This entire murder was shrouded in so much mystery and confusion, yet you managed to explain all of it with those deductions!"

Mirroring the bow she gave at the beginning the trial, Yashin once again leans forward with one arm crossed diagonally over her chest. "Mr. Wright, Miss Maya, Niijima-san; I want to sincerely thank you for your assistance today. And, Kurusu-san, I do apologize for almost implicating you in something you didn't do. But, thanks to everyone here, we were able to discover what really happened."

\---(Music End)---

I'm... speechless. Everything she just said makes sense, and is essentially the same conclusions we were able to draw. Maybe... maybe we really are in the wrong here. I just don't know anymore.

Well. At least we're getting Akira acquitted. At the end of the day, that's all we were here to do. We didn't have much reason to begin with to vouch for Mr. Canary.

But, still... something feels wrong here. Is this  _ really _ how things happened that night...?

_ To be continued... _

__ \---(Music End)---

__ \---Music:  [ Jingle ~ That's All For Today ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f10LFrjzM30) \---

_ Would you like to save your game?  _

__ __ _ Yes No _


	6. Chapter 6f: Wake Up, Get Up, Turnabout There

_April 13th, 10:05 am_

 _Tokyo District Court, Courtroom No. 2_

The audience continues on in hushed whispers as the dust settles from what looks like the end of it all. In a few moments here, Akira Kurusu is going to walk away a free man. We're off the hook, no more suspicion will be coming our way, and we'll be able to investigation and stop this potentially global conspiracy.

I don't think any of us feel right about how this is going to end, though. Jack Canary, still standing at the witness stand, seems to have lost all hope. What can we do, though? He might actually be the real culprit. The facts are all pointing to that conclusion.

Suddenly, someone starts to applaud, and the repeated sharp claps turn the room completely quiet except for those very claps.

\---Music: [ Elegant ~ And Excellence ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fUHIi1sBUw)\---

"Sssplendid! Magnificccent!" Hebi Hibiki praises as if he had just watched a performance. 

I bite my lip with frustration. Even the prosecution must see Hibiki's true colors with the way he has been behaving. "Miss Yashin, do you truly believe that Mr. Canary committed this murder? That Hibiki is innocent...?"

"Yes to the first question, no to the second one," she returns back. "It doesn't matter what I think if the facts line up. Whatever is left is the truth, that's all there is to it. And the curator clearly has a lot of shady things to own up for--blackmail in specific is a serious matter, after all--but that will have to wait for another time, if we are focused on convicting Austin Translation's killer."

"Oh, never you mind thossse accusssationsss," Hibiki dismisses, "You and I both know that there'sss no proof of anything Missster Canary alleged. Ssslander, plain and sssimple, I sssay. Either way, I'm more than impressssed, Missss Yasssshin! You dissscovered the truth down to the very lassst detail! Everything you dessscribed is exxxactly how I witnessssed it!"

Maya stands on her tiptoes and leans as if she's about to shout...

\---(Music End)---

"We can't let that slide, your Honor!" Maya reasons with a very forceful tone, "The curator just said he witnessed the crime as it happened! He told us that at the very beginning when he accused Mr. Canary, even!"

"That may be true," the Judge nods, "And if the curator wishes to testify, I will certainly allow it. But, as things stand, I believe there is more than enough evidence and testimony to make my decision."

"Then go ahead, pleassse do ssso, your Honor! Capture that dessspicable killer and bring him to jussstice!"

"Oh yeah?" Maya shouts back angrily, "If you're so confident that this guy is the real killer, then prove it! Why don't you tell us exactly what you saw, then?"

Hibiki dusts his shoulder off a few times while the tip of his tongue escapes from his lips a few times before sliding back into his mouth. "If I mussst. You lot are sssimply incorrigible. I'll testify and be done with it, and ressst assssured I will be pressssing chargesss when thisss is sssaid and done."

Maya and I stealthily high five. She's really got a talent for leading people into doing exactly what she wants. She just bought us one last chance to find the truth. "Go get him, Nick," she nods with a smirk.

"Well then, Hibiki-san," the Judge coughs, "Please, provide as much information as possible as to what you witnessed. We need as decisive a testimony as possible for justice to be handed appropriately."

"I sssuppose that'sss reasssonable..." he sssighsss... ack! Now he's got me doing the slithery 'sss' thing! Focus, Phoenix!

\---Music: [ Looming Danger (Persona Q) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdceCROhB_Q)\---

\-- What Hibiki Sssaw --

"I wasss in my officcce all evening, like I alwaysss am. Running a mussseum issn't easssy!

At a little after the turn of the hour, I heard ssshouting echoing from the atrium.

I ran as quickly as I could, and on the first floor balcony I sssaw two men fighting.

I hid for my own sssafety, naturally. The two were clearly dangerousss.

I had no idea why either of them were in the building to begin with!"

\---(Music End)---

"That... didn't really tell us much at all," Maya groans, clearly upset.

"I don't know what you expected," Yashin replies, "You're grasping at straws here."

"Regardless," the Judge coughs, "If we are allowing this testimony then I also allow the defense the right to cross-examine it."

\---Music: [ Looming Danger (Persona Q) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdceCROhB_Q)\---

"I think I can pick out an inconsistency already," Sae tells us.

"Hmm... let me guess, is it the last statement?" I infer.

"It definitely is. Maybe he didn't know why Mr. Canary was still there, but he should have a pretty good idea of why the victim was there."

Opportunities to present evidence during this entire trial have been pretty sparse, at least until now. Something in my gut tells me that the evidence train is finally going to get a chance to leave the station.

\---(Music End)---

"Hibiki-san," I start off, "I want to go into more detail about your relationship with the victim. Specifically, the fact that he was sending you quite a few text messages, which we see on the **Repaired Phone**. The victim was not only trying to contact you, but he was even headed up to your office!"

Hibiki shakes his head, and I swear it looks like the red streaks in his hair are moving on their own... "I don't recall ever getting any text messssagesss at all. How do you even know any of thossse were directed at me?"

"That's obvious!" Maya hops in, "There aren't any other offices in the museum other than yours!"

*!*

"That'sss... er..." Hibiki hisses with his narrow tongue, "Maybe he truly wasss trying to find me. But I have honessstly not a clue what he could have wanted from me! I, truly, do not know why he wasss coming to me with a weapon, nor would I have any reassson to kill him. And, furthermore, I've done nothing of offenssse to anyone!"

But... has he really done nothing that would offend anyone else? 

Of course he has. "Hibiki-san, your museum is wrapped up in scandals as if they were a boa constrictor. And I have evidence to prove it! Why don't we take a look at the very front page of this week's newspaper? It's right here in this **Sniffsonian Article**!"

"Mr. Wright, please do explain what that article is about," the Judge requests, "I hadn't a chance to actually read any of the headlines since I got here."

"I'll certainly sum it up for you, Your Honor. The Sniffsonian Museum has a very unfortunate case of various pieces of art going missing, mysteriously. A lot of the pieces in the museum have been donated or are otherwise being loaned by other owners and artists, and they are naturally extremely upset to know their exhibit pieces were handled so negligently they had gone missing completely!"

"While that does seem rather unfortunate..." Yashin responds, "I don't see how that in any way ties the victim and the witness together."

"Indeed," the Judge agrees, "I'm sorry, but I fail to see the relevancy to the situation at hand. I don't think anyone would be driven to want to kill him, nor would he have a reason to kill anyone, based on how he handles or mishandles his establishment. I would need something more directly related to really see any connection."

"Mr. Wright," Sae turns to me and whispers quietly, "I think I have an idea. If there's a disconnect between the missing pieces and the murder at the museum, we may be able to bridge the gap with another piece of evidence! One that your friend left, at that. I think he knew from the start it would be just what we need!"

"That's right!" Maya agrees, sounding pumped, "Now's the perfect time to put that piece of evidence out for everyone to see it!"

"Your Honor! I can very much give a better connection. Let's return to the **Shipping Records** that detective Ritsu still has in police custody. I think it's time the court had a closer look at the actual contents of the records."

"Sure thing, Mr. Wright," Ritsu agrees politely, "What in specific do you want to look for in these records?"

"Let's think about this, Nick," Maya encourages me, "We need to pick some kind of information that we could cross-reference with the article about the missing pieces."

Should we ask to look for...

  * The names of the artists
  * The names of the missing pieces
  * The cartoons section of the paper



"Very funny, Maya..." I groan, "But I don't think this today's _Garfield_ comic is going to help us. (Or, anyone, for that matter.)"

"Just trying to cheer you up to make sure you're at your A-game," Maya winks and thumbs up. I can't deny that her cheery pep is infectious.

"Detective, can you check the names of the pieces of artwork that are listed in the **Sniffsonian Article** ? I have a good feeling if we check those **Shipping Records** , then we may find some shocking similarities..."

The detective and a few other officers browse through the various papers and documents, and Ritsu soon has a look of revelation on his face. "Wow... every single one of the pieces that were reported as missing in the paper are listed in these records... with what seem to be dates and times, no less! There are amounts of money written, as well, like some sort of accounting ledger."

*!*

\---Music: [ Phoenix Wright ~ Objection! 2013 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mcl0WAXqWL8)\---

Great! I've been waiting for quite some time to bring his dirty deeds to light. "It seems to the defense like the witness has been keeping great care to track these pieces. I'd go so far as to say he actually knows exactly where the missing pieces are, when they left, and how much money he made by _secretly selling them off on the black market_!"

This really gets the crowd going. The picture we're finally starting to paint of Hibiki's true nature definitely isn't a piece he's going to want to hang in a museum any time soon.

"I have another request, detective," Sae announces, "Can you see if there are any names of individuals listed in those records? Specifically, the name of the victim...?"

Another quick scan for a few moments until an answer is reached. "Whoa... I see his name on this page right here," Ritsu confirms, "'Translation, Austin,' it says."

"I suspected as much," Sae nods. "Everything points to the fact that Hebi Hibiki was doing some sort of business with Austin Translation, and it was in specific relation to the very sensitive nature of his shady moonlight sales."

"So there you have it," I smirk, "The witness knew exactly who the victim was! That relationship could have turned sour any number of ways. For example, perhaps the victim had a personal stake in one or more of the exhibit pieces and he had been outbid by another buyer? Or, perhaps the victim was threatening to reveal the curator's midnight dealings. There's no way to tell the specifics, but even left to the imagination it's clear that the potential for motive exists there!"

The people in the crowd intensify further, and the Judge has to caution them with a gavel tap or two before they get out of control. "Now this is intriguing indeed!" the Judge concedes, "Given that sort of relationship, it could be feasible that one would be driven to violence against the other... it's a bit of a stretch anyone would take art that seriously--"

"How DARE you!" Yusuke stands and shouts from the audience before the people sitting around him struggle desperately to pull him back into his seat.

"--But, at the same time, just about everything else in this trial is a stretch, as well. Given that we simply do not know if Mr. Canary had any relationship with the victim, I'd go so far as to say that the Hibiki-san's likelihood of having a motive is--"

Hibiki doesn't take any of this quietly.

\---(Music End)---

"Thisss isss preposssterousss!" he shouts, and I'm one hundred percent certain that the red strands of hair are standing up on end and wiggling as if they're alive, "Thossse are the logsss I wasss usssing to invessstigate the missssing pieccces! The datesss they went missssing, the amount of the damagesss... and the namesss of the artissstsss who I would compensssate for the lossssessss!"

"So, what," Maya argues, "You'll telling us that Mr. Translation was the artist of one the pieces or something?"

"Go asssk him yourssself," Hibiki bites back rudely.

"Um, hello, sorry to interrupt again," Ritsu calls to everyone, "But I have a bit more news. I've also been in touch with the guys who were working the **Autopsy Report** , and they have a new theory."

"Of course, detective," the Judge nods, "What new information do you have for us?"

"Well, they were so caught up in trying to figure out why the stab wound didn't match the wood splinter that they didn't do much looking into the head wound. They compared notes with the forensics team who were looking over the **Hammer** , and they've both come to a realization that the size and severity of the victim's head wound makes is seem like something larger than a hammer had to have caused it."

*!*

*!*

*!*

The Judge's eyes, like everyone else's, bulge out in surprise. "Goodness! What else could it have possibly been, then?" 

"We aren't sure, yet," Ritsu explains, "We have our feet on the ground back at the museum as we speak. I've gotten word that there's an international investigations team with the boys there now, looking things over at the crime scene."

"Is that so?" the Judge questions, "Perhaps it would be best to postpone these proceedings until further investigations are completed..."

"If I may," Yashin interjects, though she looks very serious compared to normal, "I'm sorry to rain on anyone's parade, but we still haven't done anything to address the fact that _Hibiki-san could not have made it to the first floor_ in the time frame this all took place. It doesn't matter what investigating is done, we've already proven all there is to prove."

"But," Sae fires back, "What about the fact that Mr. Canary couldn't have made it to the other side of the atrium and back to pull the alarm in time?"

"He didn't pull the alarm until after the deed had already been done," Hibiki states firmly.

"How the heck do you know that?!" Maya calls into question.

"I told you, I witnessssed the murder with my own two eyesss."

"Well, you sure didn't testify about that!" Maya asserts.

"Well, fine!!" Hibiki hisses, and it's as if his red hair strands wiggle along with his tongue. "If you would give me a chanccce, I'd very well explain the ressst!"

"If you have more testimony, Hibiki-san," the Judge speaks, "Please be as specific as possible about the details."

"Gladly," Hibiki speaks, dusting his shoulders as his hair settles down, "I'll put an end to this cccharade onccce and for all."

\---Music: [ Blooming Villain ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=depoaYUQeF8)\---

\-- Ssstone Cold Gaze --

"I only sssaw the lassst part of the quarrel. It wasss horrifying, watching the victim get run through by that stone blade.

I ssstayed quiet and hid behind the ssstaircase for sssafety, and watched Canary pusssh the victim over the edge.

He rolled the ssstatue over and pussshed it asss well, I assssume to hide the evidenccce.

He ran downssstairs and began sssmassshing very ssspecccific partsss of the ssstatue even more.

Finally, Missster Canary ran to pull the alarm after the murder had already been finissshed.

When he pulled the alarm, I cccame down and pretended to not know what had happened, so he wouldn't be sssussspiccciousss."

\---(Music End)---

"This is... the most direct anyone has testified about the murder yet!" the Judge remarks.

Yashin has her eyes closed and her arms crossed and doesn't say anything.

"Is something the matter, Miss Yashin?" the Judge asks her out of concern.

She opens her eyes and her expression looks very stern. "Nothing is the matter. The trial is almost over, and the true culprit will be revealed... once we've all done our parts. I'm simply... curious, as to how the defense will handle this last testimony, and their last part."

"I see," the Judge confirms, "Very well. This trial certainly is nearing closure. Unless the investigators come back with new information, or evidence can be uncovered, I'm nearly ready to pass the verdict."

I gulp, but muster up my reserves of courage. Just as much as I don't want to see an innocent person convicted, I want to see the clearly guilty one caught. I have every incentive to corner Hibiki until he can no longer hide the truth. There has to be an explanation for what truly happened. There has to be something here we can use, _anything_. 

\---Music: [ Blooming Villain ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=depoaYUQeF8)\---

Sae and Maya seem relatively quiet. They are probably, like me, at a loss of where to go with this. I don't think we have evidence that can counter any of these claims.

"Guys... I'm running out of ideas, here. All I can really think to ask about is what kind of object the victim was struck in the head with. But, Hibiki specifically excluded that and said that he only saw the last part of the fight... he's probably going to keep his lips zipped on that point."

"Maybe we could brainstorm what else it could have been?" Sae suggests, "I doubt Hibiki would be the type of person to carry a weapon with him, plus they are saying whatever caused the wound must have been larger than a hammer. It would have had to have been something already at the scene used as an improvised weapon, I'd think."

"We do have photographs of the crime scene," Maya points out, "Maybe try to buy us some time with more questions while Miss Niijima and I look the photo of the floor over again in as much detail as possible."

I nod. "Alright. I'm counting on you guys. I'll keep going."

Well, when in doubt, question everything!

"Hibiki-san," I call, "You claim Mr. Canary grabbed the piece of stone. Why were his fingerprints not found anywhere on the statue? As he stated, he wasn't wearing gloves."

"Have you been paying attention even ssslightly? Your boorisssh immaturity isss causssing you to forget that all of the partsss that could have been touched were dessstroyed completely!"

That route's a bust. Gotta try a different approach.

"Well, even if the statue lacking prints is explained, how was Mr. Canary able to push the victim over the ledge without leaving fingerprints on the victim's clothes?"

"Are you denssse?" Hibiki speaks back spitefully, "It wasss a tackle. He charged the victim with hisss ssshoulder. Hisss handsss would have never touched the victim."

That's reasonable... I hadn't thought that through. C'mon, what else, what else... "Are you guys seeing anything?"

They shake their heads solemnly, and Sae begins to explain. "There's nothing else on the first floor in that area other than statues."

"And none of the other statues were broken or damaged in any way," Maya adds, "We saw that for ourselves."

Something HAS to be there. I just need to buy them a _little_ more time. I suppose the last thing I can think of is to nitpick every last detail.

"Will you ssstop yelling, you court jessster?!" Hibiki screeches back at me. "I'm right here. Ssstop ssshouting!"

Yikes. I guess the frustration with one another is mutual. Regardless, I ignore the backtalk and continue. "The defense still has reason to doubt that you were truly watching the entire back half of the crimes that night!" I assert, "You claim to have watched Mr. Canary destroy specific parts of the statue after the murder. If you honestly saw everything, then you would have to know exactly which parts in specific were broken!"

"Isss that all? Fine. I'll go over asss much asss I can remember."

Good, he's going to say more. Let's see where this new testimony gets us...

"The partsss ground down to dussst were the sssword holding hand, the point of the blade, and mossst of the sssword itssself.

He didn't have time to crusssh the ressst of the ssstatue, but he dessstroyed asss much asss he could."

How generous, this time he's giving me two new statements to work with.

Let's break it down. Pun semi-intended.

Does this tell us anything new?

\---(Music Soften and Slowly Fade Out)---

My gut tells me that something about those pieces doesn't match.

Wait... the sssword hand--I mean, the sword hand?

That's not right. That was one of the pieces we were looking at earlier. It's in the evidence, even! I think he finally slipped up and revealed something critical!

\---(Music End)---

"Whoa!" Maya steps back, "That caught me off guard! You found a contradiction, right?"

"That shout had quite a bit more spirit behind it than the rest, Mr. Wright," the Judge notes, "It sounds like you've discovered something important."

"I have indeed, your Honor! The witness said something that can change a lot about this case! Namely, he claims the hand that was holding the sword was destroyed without a trace."

The room is silent, at least until Yashin chuckles. I turn to see her with a smirk. She was looking at the pieces with me, so she already knows what I'm about to point out. "Your Honor, we need to look back at the **Broken Statue Shards** that the forensics team were able to put back together. One of those pieces... was the left hand!"

*!*

The Judge is thoroughly puzzled. "But... the left hand was the one holding the sword, was it not...?"

I nod my head. "That's exactly right. So, there are two possibilities here. The first, is that the witness could be mistaken about what he claims to have seen... but the second..."

I slap my the bench with both palms. "... Is that we were wrong, and the statue may not have been _Jeanne d’Arc Vaillante_ in the first place!"

*!*

"Whoa... wait, what?" Maya gasps.

Sae has been tapping her fingers against the bench for a while now. "The only other statue that was missing which had a sword, was holding the sword in the right hand, which was held at the waist--much lower to the ground, and in a much more likely location for an accidental impalement, or for it to get caught in the arc of a swinging hammer to get broken off."

"But wait..." Maya contemplates, "Didn't you say the hand that you were looking at had to have been holding something?"

"It definitely was," I state firmly, "And my guess as to what it was holding... is Medusa's head. I think the statue may have actually been _Perseo Trionfante_!"

"I'll admit, that does make sense," Yashin tells me from across the court, "I think the defense is on the right track. However, my challenge to you, Mr. Wright... is prove how that fact could possibly make a difference. Remember that you are arguing the impossible, here. It doesn't matter which statue it was. Based on the time Mask☆DeMasque saw Hibiki-san leave the office, and the time Mr. Canary pulled the alarm: _Hibiki-san could not have reached the first floor_."

\---Music: [ Suspense ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3H2zgtu9X0)\---

She's still right. She's clinging to that argument for dear life. But, actually, the way she spoke didn't sound like she was in disbelief. It sounded strangely encouraging, in a way. Like she was challenging me to figure out a way to beat the impossible.

I close my eyes, and as I focus intensely, it feels as though there's nothing but me and my thoughts, the world around me is pitch black. Absolute concentration on everything I know about this case. What's different about the Perseus statue compared to the Joan of Arc statue? We already know the sword hands were different. Perseus would have been holding Medusa's head in the other hand, but would that make a difference? No, no. I'm still thinking about the statues themselves. I need to think outside of the box here. Their physical structure truly doesn't matter if Hibiki couldn't physically be in that area at that point in time. 

Wait... area... 

These statues are moved around all the time. Maybe Hibiki rolled the statue from somewhere else on the floor? No, he wouldn't have had time to do that either. And he couldn't have rolled one down the stairs without it falling and breaking, so it couldn't have--

Wait.

Hang on, what was the second floor, again? Theme-wise, I mean. I can't remember. But I know I have that guide to double check...

Greece and Rome, eh...? 

... isn't Perseus a Greek hero...?

\---(Music End)---

Like thunder from Zeus, my palms come down onto the table once again, with a clap rivaling the Judge's gavel itself. "I've got it! I figured it out!"

Maya asks the question that I'm sure everyone else wants to as well. "What did you discover, Nick?"

"We've been wrong about more than just the statue itself. We've been wrong about the entire crime. _The murder happened not on the first floor balcony, but the second floor balcony_!"

*!*

*!*

*!*

*!*

*!*

\---Music: [ Phantom Pursuit ~ You're Mine 2019 ](https://youtu.be/Hq-D2nma6pI)\--- 

"That... would explain a lot of the inconsistencies...!!" Sae reasons. 

"I'm afraid I don't understand, Mr. Wright," the Judge shakes his head, "The statue was damaged during the fight. Are you suggesting the statue was on the second floor as well, all along? Isn't the first floor the one for statues?"

"I think we've found an exception, your Honor! Take a look at the **Atrium Exhibit Guide** , and read the section about the second floor."

I hand over the evidence to the Judge, who reads it promptly. "It says, 'Witness the most talented and unforgettable works of art from the greatest minds in history, and artifacts from a time long past! From Ancient Greece and Rome to modern day, please, enjoy our Western Art section on our second floor balcony!'"

"And therein lies the difference between whether it was a statue of Perseus or Joan of Arc. We've been taking for granite the idea that all of the statues were on the first floor--"

Maya nudges me. "Not the time for puns."

"I honestly meant to say, 'taken for granted,' I swear! I've got statues on the brain..." I whisper to her before coughing and jumping right back into it. "You see, Perseus is a legendary hero from Greek mythology. A statue of him could just as easily have been in a section dedicated to Grecian art, it would fit right into the theme of the entire floor!"

"Er, you sssee..." Hibiki tries to explain, at least until his snake-like hair strands begin to undulate so fast it's like he's being shocked by lightning, "GGGRRRRR!! Why doesss that matter at all?! Who caresss what ssstatue wasss where?!"

Sae slaps her palm on the table as well. "And, if we consider the second balcony, everything would make sense as it how Hibiki could have been involved! In that frame of time, he may not have been able to go down two floors, but he certainly would have gone down at least one! And, if we look back at the **Repaired Phone** conversation, the victim was already walking his way up before he even sent his last message. If his goal was the third floor, he would have made it up fairly high..."

Maya throws her fists in the air and pumps them back down with determination. "So, the victim and the curator definitely could have crossed paths on the second floor balcony, with enough time to have a fight up there to boot!"

"And, let's not forget!" I press further, "It doesn't matter whether he was pushed off the first or second floor balcony... he would hit the ground and end up on the ground floor regardless!"

"Don't celebrate quite yet, defense team," Yashin pauses, "There's still nothing that proves or disproves whether Hibiki-san or Mr. Canary could have done it. And, we still have no idea what exactly struck him in the head. You said yourselves you couldn't figure out what other object it could have possibly been."

A light bulb goes off above Sae's head. "That's because we were looking in the wrong place! The object would have needed to be on the second floor!"

Maya rummages through our documents. "We took a picture of the second floor balcony as well, it's in here with our other **Balcony Photographs**!"

"Let's take a look then... it's time to solve this mystery!" I assert with confidence. Time to look at this photograph and see what there is to see...

The second floor most closely resembles a regular museum. There are many podiums covered with glass housing various oddities, as well as a few objects that are out in the open such as pottery, a shield, and other ancient artifacts. There are a few paintings on the walls, and other various sculptures--

Hang on, now. It all makes perfect sense!

"Well? What did you find?" Yashin asks. She looks like she's been smiling this entire time. Looks like both of us are going to achieve our goals here, today. Akira and Mr. Canary will both be cleared of all suspicions, and Yashin will catch the true culprit.

"Now that we know who the statue is, it's obvious! Perseus' most famous exploit, killing Medusa, could only be accomplished by using the reflection of his shield! And, where else would a statue of Perseus be on display?"

I point right to the large, metal shield on display. " _Perseo Trionfante_ would naturally be placed next to a display piece of Perseus' shield!"

*!*

*!*

*!*

"With this final piece of evidence, it all comes together. Miss Yashin was spot on about the conflict. Austin Translation had to have attacked Hebi Hibiki with a hammer, and knocked off Perseus' sword. Hibiki, out of self defense, would have grabbed whatever was around to protect himself... I'd say a shield is just the right weight where someone could lift it, but heavy enough that it could easily fracture a skull with a hard enough hit! In the heat of the moment, Hibiki must have realized the victim wasn't fully dead yet, and picked up the broken sword to stab the victim--or, perhaps the stab was first and the shield bash was second--and ultimately Translation-san was pushed over the balcony railing to the ground below. That explains all of the injuries happening in the same time frame!"

"Incredible!" the Judge speaks, sounding quite impressed, "So our understanding of the murder was nearly perfect, we were just looking at the wrong location...!"

"And the shield in this photograph is the final piece of the puzzle, your Honor," I summarize. "We need to get that shield over here immediately so we can test it for fingerprints!"

"Thisss is outrageousss!" Hibiki shrieks, his red hair strands snapping out aggressively as if they are living creatures trying to bite, "That ssshield isss mussseum property, don't you dare touch it! I absssolutely will not allow anyone to bring it here, or even to touch it!"

"Why not, Hibiki-san?" I smirk, with my hands at my hips confidently. "Are you afraid that if you look into the shield, you might see the real culprit in the reflection?"

Detective Ritsu waves his hand to get everyone's attention. "Your Honor, I think the timing on this revelation is pretty much perfect. I just heard word back from my guys. Apparently the head prosecutor of the international investigation team was able to reach the same conclusion, and they were running tests on the metal shield the entire time we were speaking about it."

"Huh. Imagine that! What an uncanny coincidence!" the Judge comments, almost incredulous.

That's crazy alright. I can't imagine what kind of investigator could have been able to figure that out so quickly. But, this is definitely to our favor. "So, detective," I call, "What were they able to discover...?"

\---(Music End)---

The room tenses up. Though we have things figured out, we ultimately need some kind of proof to wrap this trial up cleanly. So, let's hear it, detective Ritsu... tell us what we've got...

"There were two discoveries that were made. The first, is that there is a dent in the shield, and the size of the dent is fairly close to the size of the fractured area of the of the victim's skull."

"You hit the nail on the head, Nick!" Maya praises, "It had to have been the murder weapon, like you said!"

"The second discovery is that there were a few fingerprints on the shield, and when they were checked along with our records, they showed consistency with the fingerprints of Hebi Hibiki."

*!*

Hibiki shouts once again, and I'm interested in seeing how he'll try to slither his way out of this one...

"I'm terribly sorry," he apologizes, surprisingly calm and collected... he isn't even doing the sss thing anymore. He dusts off his shoulder, he closes his eyes and raises his chin arrogantly, and his hair settles down to normal. He's eerily composed for someone about to be convicted for murder. His voice is just as posh and pompous as it was when we first met him. "But that doesn't prove anything at all. The Sniffsonian Museum is under my ownership. Of COURSE my fingerprints are liable to be on any of the exhibit pieces."

That's... a really weak crutch to try and stand on. Is that actually how he's going to try and deflect the blame?

"The fact of the matter remains that you have nothing to prove when or how that shield was touched. As much as you and the rest of the riff-raff enjoy eliminating the impossible, you simply can't prove that shield was ever picked up or used as a weapon. For all we know, the bumbling buffoon of a would-be murderer could have lost his balance while swinging around that blasted hammer, fallen, and bashed his head against the shield by mistake. And who knows, perhaps he fell and was impaled by the sword at that very moment? And maybe that brat with the black hair was on the second floor too? He was wearing gloves that night, he could have picked up the body and thrown it over the ledge! How about it, hmm? Can you disprove any of that? There's no camera footage whatsoever to support whatever kind of ridiculous claims you could make."

"That's because you deleted it all!!" Maya shouts back, flustered.

"You can't POSSIBLY mean to insinuate that an error with our security systems was in any way, shape, or form, intentional," he brushes aside.

Everyone in the courtroom has gone quiet. It's clear as day that Hibiki is trying to slither his way out of all of the accusations. "Face it, you incompetent lopsided lawyers can't even prove who was or wasn't where that night at all. And it doesn't take a superfluous law degree to know that you clownish conspirators are powerless without any evidence."

The Judge's eyes are completely closed for a few moments as he thinks. "This individual truly intends to stretch the meaning of 'reasonable doubt...'" he finally speaks, "But he has a point. There's nothing that can conclusively prove who killed Austin Translation. I feel as if we've gone in circles here without much to show for it."

Yashin looks like she's upset, or at least gradually growing to be. "What will you do in this situation, your Honor?"

"I can certainly rule in favor of the defendant, as it's quite unlikely this young man had anything to do with these crimes after all," the Judge reasons, but he suddenly shakes his head and disappointment is clear on his face. "But when it comes to convicting whoever truly is guilty... there's just not much that can be done without proof."

"Hey, Maya, Sae... I think I have our solution here," I whisper softly.

"What do you mean...?" Sae questions.

"Think about it. This is a museum, right?" I reason, "What's one of the most basic of basic rules at a museum...?"

"You don't mean...!!" Maya gasps, "You DO mean! You absolutely DO mean what I think you mean!"

I smile and nod. "And I have one last piece of evidence to put an end to this. Let's catch this guy once and for all."

*!*

All eyes are on me, and my eyes are on Hebi Hibiki. "Hibiki-san. How seriously do you take your job as curator?"

"What?" he blinks with a raised eyebrow, "You can't mean to be so crude as to attack my character, can you? Of course I take my job seriously."

"And you treat all of your museum's pieces with respect and care, right?" I lead.

"Of course I do," he confirms, as I'd expect, "I'm extremely careful and caring for my exhibits. What curator worth their salt would say otherwise?"

Let's keep leading him on. I need him to say exactly what I want him to say. "Does everyone on the museum staff treat the exhibits with care, too?"

"Are you daft? Of course they do! I ensure they do!"

He's taking the bait...!! "I see. So you're at least mildly strict on being careful around the artwork."

"I'm INCREDIBLY strict on them to be careful around all of the museum displays! What exactly are you trying to accomplish here other than waste everyone's time?"

"I was just trying to ensure that you at least run your museum professionally, since your behavior today as well as with the missing art pieces has brought your capability as a curator into question."

"How dare you!" he hisses back, and I can tell that my pushing his buttons is riling him back up. "Make no mistake. The Sniffsonian would not be a world-class museum if it weren't under the most capable of ownership! Running this museum properly is my life!"

"Mr. Wright, why on Earth are you badgering the witness with so many questions?" the Judge questions.

"I was just reflecting, your Honor. Reflecting... just like Perseus' shield did to help him defeat the snake monster. And I was just thinking to myself, that I wish Hebi Hibiki would reflect on the crimes he committed. But, there's one rule he broke that he has no choice but to own up to. One of the rules that he just quite clearly told us he takes EXTREMELY seriously."

\---Music: [ Phantom Pursuit ~ You're Mine 2019 ](https://youtu.be/Hq-D2nma6pI)\---

"Ladies and gentlemen of the court, take a look at the basic guidelines of proper and improper behavior within the **Atrium Exhibit Guide**. I'd like for everyone to take notice of this particular line:

"Only museum staff may touch the art with specialized gloves."

His face turns white. The brief moments of composure he had tried to put on at the very end have vanished completely, and he opens his mouth to try and protest. All he's able to do is stutter and bumble as he gets tied on his own, slithery tongue.

"Face it, Mr. Curator. Maybe it's because you truly respect art. Or maybe you simply don't want to damage the merchandise you plan on selling under the table. Whatever the reason, you just told us yourself: under regular circumstances, you would have _never_ touched your exhibits with your bare hands. But that all changed when you had no choice but to grab whatever object was close enough to defend yourself."

*!*

*!*

*!*

*!*

*!*

Everyone in the room is speechless.

Yashin smiles at me and gives a thumbs up. 

This is it. The moment the killer's identity is set in stone, this trial is over. "Hibiki-san, I can understand why you didn't admit to this crime, because you were afraid investigations would come back and reveal the secret of you selling off other people's artwork. However, instead of just admitting your wrongdoing, you tried to frame not one, but TWO, innocent people for this murder. I'd say that reflects fairly poorly back on you, Mr. Curator."

I point my finger right at the true killer. "The murder weapon has your fingerprints all over it, and the Sniffsonian Museum prohibits even the staff from touching the exhibits without gloves. Hebi Hibiki, if you won't reflect on your crimes, then maybe instead you should _reflect on the rules of your own museum!_ "

All at once, Hibiki breaks down completely, and his serpentine hair strands lash out every which way in a frenzy as the curator shakes, holding his hands up in complete defeat. Slowly, the motions of his hair all stop until his whole body is extremely still. Cold sweat doesn't even begin to describe him. He's downright petrified. Statue-like. In fact, his skin and clothes all turn grey with a rocky texture as if he's literally turned into a statue, and he falls over with a thump.

\---(Music End)---

_April 13th, 10:40 am_

 _Tokyo District Court, Courtroom No. 2_

Those of us at the defense team couldn't be in higher spirits. We managed to save Akira, went out of our way to defend an innocent person, and managed to capture the true culprit. At any point, we could have walked away having achieved Akira's innocence, without giving those other things a second thought. Sometimes I wonder why we defense attorneys have to make things so hard on ourselves. But the answer is obvious. Because it's the right thing to do.

The Judge takes a breath of relief. "Well, Mr. Wright. Miss Fey. It certainly seems like no matter where any of us go, excitement will follow."

"You can say that again," I chuckle.

"And, Miss Niijima, Miss Yashin, and you as well, detective Ritsu," the Judge continues, "I have to thank all of you for doing your best today to ensure that justice was truly served."

"I'd take another bow," Yashin replies with embarrassment, "But I feel like a fool for bowing so preemptively earlier when I did. All of the credit goes to the defense on catching the real crook."

"I'd say you contributed more than a little, yourself!" the Judge compliments, "But Hebi Hibiki and his upcoming conviction at a later point is not the focus on our trial today. At this moment in time, we owe a proper verdict to the accused. I hereby declare the defendant, Akira Kurusu..."

The audience cheers like no tomorrow. The most lively of the celebrating comes from the cluster of young adults, including Yusuke, who I know by this point are all friends with Miishima and Akira. Iwai from earlier seem to be smirking quite cockily, and even the Big Wins guy has a look of relief on his face, as hard to notice at it is.

As confetti falls from the ceiling, I almost have to double-take to make sure the falling papers aren't the work of Mask☆DeMasque flying in again. He sure put on quite the show, earlier. And, thankfully, his involvement seems to be out of the spotlight for the time being. We'll need to meet up with Ron himself at some point after this all blows over. We're going to have a lot to talk about. 

As things are wrapped up in here, the audience members are beginning the leave the room in an orderly fashion, and those of us at the defense table gather our things and prepare to head out.

Really, there's a TON of things that we need to address now that this trial is over. We going to meet Alibaba and the Phantom Thieves, we need to find Ron to talk about the Orb, and--

"Mr. Wright," I hear someone call to me. As I turn, I see I'm actually approached by the gentleman in the hat who spoke to Mr. Canary during the trial. I wonder what he has to say? He offers me a handshake, which I return, and he extends the offer to Sae and Maya as well. "The name's Winfred Kitaki. I go by 'Big Wins,' though. Do you have a minute?"

"Of course," I answer.

"Thanks. I won't take up too much of your time," he speaks. He holds his fist up to his mouth to cough and turns his head slightly. Despite having the kind of face that would instill authority and respect, he actually seems to be acting a bit nervous. "You uh, you folks from California?"

"Miss Niijima lives around here, but Nick and I are from the states. Los Angeles, in specific," Maya explains.

"Really, Los Angeles, even? Small world," Big Wins chuckles, "My business is based in the same city."

"You mentioned your business was what brought you here to Tokyo," Sae recalls, "What kind of business do you run?"

"Hmm," he mumbles, as if he's thinking of how to word his answer. If it's going to be what I think it is, then I can understand why. "Well. Let's just say, that I run the family business, and leave it at that."

I wonder if they have exposure to those old Mafia films in Japan? Anyone familiar with a mob stereotype can pretty much instantly get what type of business Big Wins must work in just based on his style of dress and speech. I think Sae pretty much gets the gist, at least.

"Rest easy, miei amici. I never pull straight citizens into family matters," he deflects before coughing once more and speaking again. "I'm not great with words, so I'll get right to the point. All of you could have walked out of this room at least an hour ago with your client a free man. But you chose to stay in there and you helped Mr. Canary all the same. I can tell you ladies and gentleman have character. The kind of character that you don't see every day. I want to thank you. I truly do."

I feel humbled just because of how much authority and respect a man like this must normally demand. But this does have me second guessing myself, now... was Mr. Canary a part of a crime family...?

"I see on your face what you want to ask. Listen. Jack isn't in the business. But I think you all would get along great, because he has character like you all do. In the past, he had a choice to do the right thing, and he did, and my son is still alive because of it. And what you did to help him today was a great service."

He hands me a slip of folded paper. Inside of it is his name, as well as a phone number. "And look. Service and respect are a two way street. If you guys are ever in a tight spot... just give me a call. My family will be there to help," is the last thing he says before straightening his tie and walking away.

"Did we just make a Mafia contact, Nick?" Maya asks in disbelief.

"I, uh. I think we did," I confirm.

Things are going to stay interesting for our entire stay in Tokyo, I can tell. 

_ACT SIX END._

\---Music: [ Jingle ~ That's All For Today ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f10LFrjzM30)\---

_Would you like to save your game?_

_Yes No_


End file.
